


The Dragon and the Hunter

by XGothicxAngelX



Category: Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Genre: Adultery, Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Casual Sex, Character Death, Character Development, Confessions of love, Domestic Violence, Eventual Relationships, Eventual Smut, Explicit Language, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Falling In Love, First True Love, Heartbreak, Lost Love, Multiple Miscarriages, Original Character(s), Past Drug Use, Physical Abuse, Rape/Non-con Elements, Secret Relationship, Suicide Attempt, Trust Issues, Underage Drinking, Underage Prostitution, Unhealthy Relationships, Unplanned Pregnancy, Verbal Abuse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-26
Updated: 2018-10-21
Packaged: 2019-01-23 20:00:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 14
Words: 47,392
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12515412
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/XGothicxAngelX/pseuds/XGothicxAngelX
Summary: Okay, so this is my newest idea. I've been working to improve it a lot. This story is based around my Imperial Dragonborn named Annalise. She has rebellious youth years, and ends up being put into an arranged marriage by her VERY religious and VERY moralized parents as a way of having her repent her "sinful ways". It is to a man named Erikur, he is a rich Nord man who is also a thane to Jarl Elisif the Fair in Solitude. He seems nice and sweet at first a year before they are to marry one another, him taking her out to expensive dinners, buying her expensive things including jewelry and clothing. But everyone, but her family, have a bad feelings about him and she hears nothing but bad things about him even from his own sister Gisli. She foolishly brushes them off and finds out the hard way that the whispers about him are indeed true. She suffers through abuse with him for a long time. Along the way she does become pregnant but miscarries every time because of him. But miracles can happen...one can only hope. She becomes a thief much later and also more later meets Kaidan, livtempleton's follower mod. I give her ALL credit for him and his story, and dialogue. She gave me permission to use him in this story. :) :) :) :)





	1. Rebellious Soul

**Author's Note:**

> OKAY! I hope you enjoy this story! I am definitely aiming to make this much more detailed than my previous stories. I will warn you all first hand: This story contains domestic physical, verbal, and sexual abuse in some of the chapters. If you are sensitive to those things, read at your own risk! You have been warned.
> 
> ANYWAY! 
> 
> Enjoy this fanfic! Again ALL CREDIT for Kaidan goes to livtempleton on Nexus Mods and the Xbox mods! :D

Annalise is the firstborn daughter of two Cyrodiil natives by the names of Matthias and Luciana, but they moved to Solitude long before she or any of her siblings were even born. She was born on the seventeenth of Last Seed, on a warm afternoon in the city of Solitude, the capital of Skyrim. Her parents were very devout followers of The Empire, and supported the banning of Talos worship and thought that the White-Gold Concordat was the best decision the Empire made. She never wanted to lead a life of devoutness and supporting the Empire, but her parents were forcing their lifestyle on her along with her siblings Damon and Marcella. Her brother Damon was the middle child, while their sister was the youngest. Her parents forcing them to live the way they were, made Annalise decide to rebel at age fifteen. She encouraged her siblings to do the same, and since they looked up to her and saw her as someone they wanted to be like when they got older, they listened and started to rebel against this forced lifestyle. Their parents were not happy with it at all. But...Annalise took things to the next level. She started to sneak out of the house in the middle of the night, and would go to The Winking Skeever, to drink with random men. Mostly all adventurers or travelers stopping in Solitude for the night or for the next few days. 

She was drawn to tough guys and bad boys. All bad news types. Most of them were all Nord men...big, burly, tough Nord men. They were all at least ten or more years older than her, but she didn't care. She wanted to rebel and she wanted to rebel in the worse way for her parents. She was selling herself for money too. She would just drink and drink until she was almost black out drunk. The men she would drink with always bought her drinks, so she got them all for free all the time. The men would start hitting on her, asking her if she was single, asking her if she was ever with a man before. She would just answer...honestly...no lies at all because of how drunk she would get. She was with one right now. A big, strong Nord man. Muscles, scars, clad in hide armor, fair skin tone, medium length hair that reached his shoulders, braided twice on both sides of his head. Light brown hair, beautiful blue eyes, and slight scruff on his face. She was drunk...again. She spoke, slurred,  
“Ya know...yer really...*hic*...attractive. But I...*hic*...bet all the...*hic*...gurls tell ya that, huh?”  
The man chuckled and smirked saying,  
“You flatter me...well, I can't say all the girls say it to me. I mostly say it to them. Nice to hear it from a girl to me this time...so, you ever been with a man?”  
“Yah...I've been with...*hic*...a few of 'em...why...*hic*...ya askin'?” she answered, slurred. This definitely wasn't going to be her first sexual encounter...  
“Oh? So...not a virgin? I'm fine with that...makes it easier to slide inside...” he said, raking his eyes up and down her body. He was also getting to be drunk.  
She let out a drunken laugh and said,  
“Wat ya mean...*hic*...by that?”  
He smirked leaning in closer to her ear and whispered,  
“I think you know what I mean, girl...”  
She shuddered and smiled drunkenly and said,  
“Ooohhh...so, ya want...*hic*...me, huh? Give me...*hic*...a good night?”  
He just nodded slowly while smirking at her still. She just smiled drunkenly again and said,  
“...'kay...it's gonna cost ya though...”  
The man's face lit up and he slapped a pretty big coin purse onto the bar counter for the drinks and...to rent a room. The Innkeeper just took it reluctantly, and gave Annalise a sad look. He knew her, he saw her grow up. He's been the Innkeeper for a long time, while his son Sorex and his daughter Minette, helped by cleaning the Inn. His son grew up with her, and he even had a small crush on her at one point. The Innkeeper just hated seeing her degrade herself like this all the time. All he could think was “What if she gets pregnant by some random perverted adventurer?” or “I should tell her parents about this...” he was very conflicted. Sorex no longer pursued her since it seemed like she wasn't interested anyways, he started to pursue Vivienne Onis, a Breton woman whose aunt ran Angeline's Aromatics next to the Inn. He just helplessly watched her stumble up the stair. The man had his arms wrapped around her also. He was “supporting” her and “helping” her up the stairs so “she didn't fall.” But he was getting all handsy with her too. Touching her everywhere “accidentally” because she “stumbled.”

They reached the room, he shut the door behind them and he just started to strip her out of her clothes immediately, and she clumsily fumbled with the straps of his armor. She was about to do it again...sleep with a perfect stranger. Have him fuck her any way he wanted to. The man was rather hasty and rough with her, but she liked that way the most especially when she was drunk. Even when she was sober she welcomed it. She liked when men just threw her down onto the bed and fucked her raw, to the point of her climax. But, she was choosing a bad path in life...a very bad path. Once the man finished up with her, he just collapsed next to her and both were a sweaty heap now. Both were panting and had smiles on their face. The man than grabbed another swollen coin purse and handed it to her. She took it slowly and said, still slurred a little,  
“This is a pretty big...coin purse here. How...much did ya give me?”  
The man said,  
“400 septims. That was probably the best I've had in a long time so you deserve a fair sum of money...”  
Her eyes widened slightly and she just smiled and got out of the bed. She didn't stay with them. He asked,  
“Where do you think you're going?”  
“Sorry...ya want me to stay the night with ya? That's extra. Buh bye...have a good one...nice work with me, one of the best clients I've had.” she said, smiling. She was still kind of drunk. She was also getting redressed.  
The man just sighed and dropped his head onto the pillow saying, under his breath,  
“Greedy bitch...”  
She heard it but didn't even acknowledge it. She opened the door, and exited the room shutting the door behind her. She was still fixing parts of her clothing as she was swaying down the stairs, falling against the wall, having to hold onto it for support. She was still clutching onto her 400 septims he gave her as payment for her services. The Innkeeper saw her and just shook his head. Her hair was still a mess, her clothes were wrinkled, and her makeup was slightly smeared. She also bore a brand new hickey on her neck. Her wrists were a little bruised, but only because he was the dominate type, and liked to pin her wrists above her head. First one she had like that in a long time. It was all consensual though, not forced. He just had this look of disappointment on his face aimed towards her. She didn't notice and just left the Inn still trying to make herself look decent in her drunken state. She was headed back home, but he knew he needed to tell her parents about this behavior and her actions. It was time they knew what she's been doing to get money in her pockets.

He wrote a letter out, and sent his son to put it in their mailbox so they saw it tomorrow when they woke up. Sorex was more than willing to participate in getting Annalise back on the right path in life. He still cared about her, he may not have a crush on her anymore...well, he still did a little bit. But he just wanted her back to her old self again, the girl he grew up with. The sober, more cautious, innocent, girl she used to be. Even though her innocence was long gone. She was going to be in some deep trouble now. But it was all for her own good...or so he thought it would have been...


	2. Trouble Loves Company

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Annalise's parents find out about her erratic and inappropriate behavior at the Inn...

Annalise was awoken the next morning by her father's angry sounding voice...calling for her. She had a pounding headache since she was hungover still. So she groaned and rubbed her eyes. She then slowly got up out of bed and walked out to see what her father wanted. She was really worried, but also didn't care what it was. She was just holding her head, and her eyes were slightly squinted. She headed out to where his voice came from. He immediately rushed over to her and had a very angry expression on his face. He yelled,  
“You want to explain to me why the fuck the Innkeeper sent us this letter saying how you've been...degrading yourself with random men EVERY DAMN NIGHT, for the past month?!”  
She had full attention on him now, and struggled to find anything to say. Her father continued yelling saying,  
“Nothing to say, huh?! Well...you're in a lot of trouble!”  
“Annalise...you need to tell us why you've been doing these sinful acts! The gods punish those who sin and usually have no mercy on their souls.” said her mother.  
She just put her head down not wanting to speak or look at her parents at all. Her father forced her to look at them by grabbing a hold of her jaw and turning her head to face him. His expression was still angry and said,  
“You will speak to us and explain why you've been doing these...disgusting acts, and you'll tell us now!”  
She sighed loudly and said,  
“I don't know why! Maybe it's because I wanted to!”  
That made her father more angry with her and her mother spoke next saying,  
“It's not right, Annalise! You knew none of those men! And you drank with them, and they paid you to bed them. You were being a prostitute just because you wanted to do it?!”  
“It's also wrong for you to bed a man when you are not wed to! It is not what the gods want for us. The gods punish those who sin and have premarital relations with others. Hope that they have mercy on you, Annalise.” said her father.  
Annalise just furrowed her brow in frustration and looked down, clenching her jaw. 

Her mother spoke again saying,  
“Because of this unfortunate discovery...we have arranged a marriage for you. You are to marry Erikur, one of the Jarl's thanes. He is a good friend of ours and seems like a very respectful and nice man. He is also very wealthy which will help you out once you marry him.”  
“WHAT?!” exclaimed Annalise, frustrated.  
“Don't use that tone with your mother, young lady! Also, you need to get a job somewhere. No more of this bedding men for money and acting like a common whore! There are many places around here for you to get a job at.” said her father.  
“I don't want to marry a man I've never met! Just because you two were in an arranged marriage, doesn't mean you need to force me to do it! I'm fine with getting a job, but not marrying someone I don't know!” she argued.  
“You're fine with sleeping with random men at the tavern, but when it comes to marrying a man in an arranged marriage you have a problem with it?!” asked her father, still angry.  
That made her shut up real quick and drop her head. Her father continued saying,  
“Nothing to say to that? Good. You're getting a job and once you turn 18, you will be marrying Erikur. Which means, you are no longer allowed to continue your sinful services at the tavern. No. Further. Arguments. Now, get out there, and find a job to do.”  
With that final statement from her father, she slowly stood up and left the house to go and find a job. 

She searched everywhere around the city, but no one would accept her because of her reputation. They didn't want to make themselves or their businesses look bad with hiring a whore like her. Which is what they all told her too. She was starting to lose hope and give up on trying, until she tried one more place. The Blacksmith's shop. The owner was an older Nord man with a wife named Sayma, whom was a Redguard, and a young son named Kayd. His wife ran the shop by the name of Bits & Pieces. It was a general store, she sold and bought just about anything. She approached Beirand, cautiously, in fear of being turned away again. She said,  
“Um...excuse me, sir?”  
He turned and smiled saying,  
“Oh, hello, there. Matthias and Luciana's oldest daughter right?”  
“Y-Yes, that's me. You wouldn't happen to be taking a new apprentice would you? I need a job and no one else would hire me.”  
“I actually was looking to hire an apprentice, I could always use the help making the armor and weapons for the Legion. You're hired if you're willing to work around heat all the time, and be working constantly.” he explained, smiling.  
“R-Really?! Oh, yes, yes of course. I'm up for anything. Any type of challenge is welcome to me. I'm always wanting to learn new things as well.” she said, happily.  
“Great to hear. You're hired. What is your name by the way? I know who your parents are, just not you or your siblings.” he stated.  
“I'm Annalise. I prefer Anna or Ann though.” she said, smiling.  
“Alright, I'll call you Ann then. Name's Beirand. Oh, also, if you don't mind my asking...why would no one hire you? You seem like you have great potential and you have a great eagerness to learn, someone not hiring you is a fool if you ask me.” he said.  
“Oh...well...I don't have a good reputation right now...and no one wanted to hire me and make themselves and their shops look bad...I'm known as the town whore now...I did some things I shouldn't have, and I'm starting to regret them now since everyone now looks at me like a social pariah and a blight on this city.” she explained, head down.  
“Bah...who cares what they think of you? None of their opinions matter, they don't know you or anything you've gone through in life. I don't look at you as a social pariah or blight on this city. You're just a young girl with a full future ahead of her. What you did in the past won't matter when you get older. Everyone makes mistakes, even they all have and hell, even I have. Don't take their opinions of you to heart, Ann. You're an apprentice now, to one of the best smiths in Skyrim. None of this city's personal opinions of you matter now.” he explained.  
That made her feel a lot better and she smiled. She was glad to see someone in this city didn't give her glares or looks of disgust as she stood in front of them or walked past. He then went on to tell her she would start working for him today, and she just needed a blacksmith's uniform and to tie her hair up, then she could get started. He had an extra one, and it fit her pretty well surprisingly. She tied her hair up into a bun, she had a lot of hair to deal with. She didn't want it catching fire when she was at the forge. He taught her everything there was to smithing, and she caught on rather quickly. Which impressed him. 

She was now getting to be a great smith and was definitely earning her pay honestly and appropriately without degrading herself anymore. Some of her returning clients were disappointed to see she no longer was in service at the Inn, and usually just left in a huff after they had their ale or mead. But, she was glad that she abandoned that life. She was just very angered that she was to marry some man she didn't know now because of her poor choices. She was rather angry at the gods for allowing this to happen to her...but she blamed herself the most. Her choices were now becoming deep regrets, but she usually brushed them all off and left it at that focusing on her work. She did not look forward to her eighteenth birthday now...


	3. Erikur

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erikur decides to get to know her better...and asks her out on a date.

Annalise has been working for Beirand for a whole year now, and she was just as good of a smith as he was now. He was also like a father figure to her and her closest and only friend. No one looked at her disgusted anymore, but she still knew they talked about her and what she did in the past. She just minded her own business, ignoring their whispers and looks that some still did. She was pretty wealthy now, since he was paying her fifteen septims an hour, and she worked from 8 am to 8 pm, so she was walking away with a pretty fair amount of septims every night. Her parents were also better with her, but she still didn't see eye to eye with them on certain subjects. Her siblings had their own jobs now too. Her sister helped out at the alchemist shop, and her brother worked for the Fletcher shop. 

Beirand and her got another very large order from General Tullius and his second in command Legate Rikke. They needed a lot more sets of armor of all types, more swords, and more shields. They were definitely working over time tonight. Annalise was on the workbench tempering all the items Beirand finished up, and none of them noticed when Erikur approached, arms crossed, and was looking around their work space. His face seemed like he was bored, but he tried his hardest to look like he was interested in it all. Failing miserably. Erikur then cleared his throat and Annalise stopped what she was doing, closed her eyes, and sighed...she knew who it was. She met Erikur already, but still doesn't really know him all that well. She slowly turned to look over her shoulder at him, and he smiled at her. She was filthy...her uniform was stained, she had dirt on her face...and she was not really in the mood right now. Beirand didn't look at Erikur in a friendly way at all, but he nodded once signaling her to go and see what he wanted to ask or say to her. She set her hammer down and walked over to Erikur and said,  
“Hello, Erikur...”  
“Hello, Annalise. Just wanted to stop by and ask when you will be done tonight.” he said, smiling.  
“Well...we have a huge order that we got from General Tullius and Legate Rikke 3 days ago, and they requested it to be done by tonight. We still have a lot to do and about 50 or more pieces of weaponry and armor to make, so we'll be working a lot later than 8 tonight. Why did you want to know?” she explained.  
“Oh...such a shame. I wanted to take you out tonight. I figured since we're marrying next year, that I could get to know you better. I would really love to know more about you, Annalise.” he said, smiling.  
She smiled at his words and said,  
“R-Really? That's...really nice. I would actually like that...but...duty calls.”  
She gave a sheepish grin and he smiled at her again saying,  
“I understand. Perhaps...tomorrow night?”  
“Yeah. Tomorrow night will work perfectly.” she stated.  
“I look forward to it...” he said, with a half-smile.  
With that he walked away and she went back to her work area. Beirand just kept watching Erikur as he walked away with the most hateful glare he could muster. Annalise noticed this and said,  
“What's your problem with him?”  
“What isn't my problem with that pompous asshole?” he said, frowning.  
“Hey, he doesn't seem like he's that bad of a guy, Beirand. He wants to get to know me more...that's unheard of with arranged marriages.” she said.  
“Not that bad of a guy...? Did you...really...just say that, Ann?” he said, looking like he couldn't believe what she just said.  
“What? What's so bad about him? I haven't noticed anything off about him at all.” she said.  
“He's fake, Ann! He just acts like he's the nicest man to ever walk the streets of Solitude and acts like he's so generous. He only cares about himself. No one else. He is greedy, and cares about money and business dealings with the East Empire Company more than he does his own sister, the only family he has left.” he explained.  
“Well I have yet to get to know how he is. So...I won't judge till he proves what everyone is saying is true...and I hope they aren't true.” she said, working on the armor once again.  
“I fear everyone may be right about him...there's just something wrong with him and he's hiding something. But please...tell me if he ever hurts you in any way...and I will have something done about it.” he explained to her.  
“I will. Even though I feel like you're just being paranoid, Beirand.” she stated, rolling her eyes.  
“I pray...that you're right, Ann...” he said, quietly.   
She didn't seem to hear him say that and just continued to work on the armor pieces he handed over to her.

He couldn't help but worry for her future...and how all of his suspicions along with everyone else's were most likely the truth. He just hoped her judgment was better than his...


	4. Here Comes The Bride...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The time has come for Annalise and Erikur to marry...but it doesn't turn out the way she hopes...this marriage isn't going to be a happy one.
> 
> !!!TRIGGER WARNING!!!  
> Warning: This chapter contains domestic abuse/violence and rape...please do not read if you are sensitive to that type of thing. I understand that some people don't like when writers include these things, but I usually put real world issues in my stories no matter what they are about. I do apologize in advance if it happens to offend anyone :(

It was Annalise's wedding day. She spent the whole day getting ready to be married to Erikur, she was actually not as bitter as she was about this marriage when she was first told about it when she was 15, but she still felt very uneasy. She heard nonstop talk about Erikur and what a horrible person he was for a straight year...she was not happy about the marriage but not bitter about it either if that makes any sense. She just didn't know how life with Erikur would be and if the rumors about him were indeed true. They were married at the Temple of the “Eight” Divines, and were going to be married by the High Priest of the temple. Annalise had many people on her side of the temple, while Erikur only had his sister, Bryling, whom was another Thane of the city, Jarl Elisif and the rest of the court. None were really considered friends of his either since they all talked nothing but bad about him. He needed witnesses though, so he asked them all. Everyone on his side just looked sympathetic of Annalise which worried her even more. She just grinned and bared it all.

The ceremony was about to begin, so some bards from the college started to play a song for her to walk down the aisle to. It wasn't the traditional “here comes the bride” but something much more elegant sounding and it was flute music. She wore a red and white wedding dress, along with sandals and a flower crown, like the traditional wedding wear was for women in Skyrim. She held a bouquet of lavender, roses and dragon's tongue. Her makeup matched the red and white dress she wore, her nails were even painted a bright red for the occasion. She didn't have a smile on her face for most of the wedding, but faked one every now and then for the sake of Erikur and their guests. She kept thinking about how bad of a person he must really be...but then brushed it away to make herself feel better. She's his soon-to-be wife...he couldn't possibly be a bad person towards her, right? She just kept saying that to herself even through the entire reception. Once it was all over and done with, it was time for her to move into his house in the city, which was very close to the Blue Palace of course. All of her things were already moved there earlier in the day...well, all the stuff he bought her was. Since he threw away all of her old clothes and jewelry. His excuse for throwing them all away was “You deserve the best and I'll give that to you.” She thought nothing of it and just accepted his gifts. 

They arrived at the house and he opened the door offering her to go inside first, and then gave a quick look around before he entered after her. She was looking around at her new surroundings. Everything about his house was very elegant and luxurious looking. From the furniture all the way down to the silverware and kitchen ware. She then smiled and said,  
“Wow...this house is very impressive. Much better than my parents' house.”  
He was silent for a minute but then spoke saying,  
“Of course it's better than their house...they weren't rich like I am.”  
The sharpness in his tone made her frown and say,  
“I'm sorry?”  
“Oh, just shut up will you? You're my woman now...I'll have no talking about your peasant family...are we clear on that?” he said, rudely.  
“U-Um...okay. Are you alright, Erikur? You seem...different than you were earlier.” she said, becoming very concerned now.  
“I'm perfectly fine...and I'll stay that way if you obey me and do exactly as I say for the rest of this marriage.” he stated.  
She said nothing and was rendered speechless. His whole demeanor was changed. She started to realize everything that everyone was saying about him was true: He was indeed a terrible person. But she felt like this was just the start of it. He continued to speak, hands folded behind his back, saying,  
“Now...I have rules for you to follow. As did all my previous wives. First rule...you do whatever I say and whatever I want you to do, secondly I want breakfast every morning when I wake up and dinner every night when I return home from court and you need to serve it to me, thirdly I want a clean house whenever I come home as well, and lastly I want sex from you every night. No debates or arguments with me or you will be punished...as harshly...as I could possibly muster. Well...all of this talking is becoming a bore...I think it's about time we consummate our marriage, don't you think?”   
He eyed her up and down, while licking his lips. She became aware of what his intentions were and she just started to shake her head frantically. This made him frown deeply and become angered. He slowly walked over to her, no expression on his face and said,  
“You must not have heard me...sex is not an option for you. I need an heir. You have no say in this matter!”  
His voice rose at the end, making her jump and stutter out some words saying, rather mumbled,  
“I-I should have a s-say in this matter.”  
“What was that?!” he burst out, anger in his eyes and tone.  
She flinched and started to back away from him, making him advance closer to her every step she took. She was met with a cold, stone wall at her back and he was now inches away from her. He slammed both of his hands on the wall behind her and she yelped at the impact. He leaned closer to her and smirked darkly. She felt like she wanted to cry...he was scaring her. He said, in a harsh whisper,  
“Damn...seeing you cower like you are and knowing I'm the cause...is getting me going. Makes me want to just rip your clothes off and fuck you right here against the wall while you writhe and try to get free of my grasp...”  
She tried to get away from him, but he roughly grabbed a hold of her wrist and yanked her back to her original spot. He said, angered,  
“Stay right here! I told you this was not an option for you.”  
He started to rip and tear at her wedding dress, making her start to cry and make yelps and whimpers...making him get off even more. She was pinned against the wall so she could barely move or try to break free and get away from him. Her struggles were a turn on for him at first but now he was growing impatient with it. He growled and proceeded to slap her so hard across the face it made her stumble and almost fall to the ground, but his grip on her wrist caused her to stay standing. He said, through gritted teeth,  
“Stop. Fighting. Me.”  
She had nothing of her wedding dress left except for a ragged, old torn piece of material that still covered her body but not as much as it did before. He tore the flower crown off her head and threw it aside, and ordered her to take her sandals off and she kicked them off at his command since she didn't want to make him angry again. She still tried to fight him off to the best of her abilities but he was too strong and overpowered her every time. She did manage to break free but it didn't last very long, because after she shoved him away from her and tried to run out the door, he grabbed a hold of her very long hair and pulled her back to him, making her cry out in pain. His hand was tangled in her long locks, and he pulled her head back to the point of her ear being right next to his mouth and whispered,  
“I wouldn't try that again if I were you...”  
She tried to get out of his grip again, but he only held on tighter and made her cry out again. This time...he started to pull her towards the stairs by her hair. Making her yelp and whimper with every harsh tug he did. He dragged her up the stairs to the bedroom. She saw where they were now and started to scream out for help, and he just laughed at her futile attempt at getting help from anyone in this city, these walls were impenetrable, no sound could make it past them all. He ripped what was left of her dress off and threw it aside. He then threw her onto the bed, ripping her undergarments off in the process and she backed up into the bed frame and hugged her knees to her chest, tears made their way out of her eyes. He smirked at her, breathing heavily with arousal at her pain he was causing. He started to undress himself, making her become more frantic. He had his top off and was now half revealed in front of her. He yelled,  
“Don't cover yourself!”  
She flinched and hesitantly removed her knees from her chest, and kept her head down. He yelled,  
“Don't look away from me! Look at me!”  
She jumped again and looked up at him slowly, he was now working on removing his pants, along with his undergarment. He was now fully exposed to her, and she was fully exposed to him. He started to slowly crawl onto the bed towards her, like a hungry wolf cornering his prey...and she definitely felt like prey right now. She tried to get away from him once more, and again he grabbed a hold of her wrist and yanked her back, getting on top of her to pin her in place beneath him. She squirmed and writhed under him as she cried and told him to stop and to not do this, but he just smirked that evil smirk of his, and forced her to stay still and when it didn't work, he slapped her across the face again, leaving behind cuts on the left side of her face. They even reached across the bridge of her nose with how bad they were. That made her scream out again, and he pinned her wrists on the sides of her head and forced her legs apart with his knee. But she didn't let him have his way so easily, foolishly...and this made him keep her legs apart with his knees, her thighs would definitely be bruised after this nightmare was over. 

All that was heard behind the closed bedroom door were cries of pain, screaming, her telling him to stop, and his groans and grunts. After he had his way...he just finished inside of her and collapsed right next to her. Her voice was now hoarse and her tears were still flowing. She had blood on her face now from when he slapped her and her whole body ached...especially her lower regions. Her wrists were now bruised, her neck even had a bruise in the shape of a hand print around it, since he did nothing but pin her wrists down and switched to choking her during the whole ordeal. Her thighs had newly forming bruises on the inner parts of them. He just fell asleep next to her like nothing even happened. She could barely move, and didn't know what to do...she needed to get up...to stand. But she couldn't, she still tried as best as she could to stand up...she needed to clean herself up...she knew she was probably a mess and she wanted the feeling of him off of her. She finally was able to get her feet onto the ground and slowly pushed herself up and off the bed. She slowly walked over to the bathroom, where a small mirror hung on the wall with a wash basin below it. She didn't want to look in the mirror...but she brought herself to. Once she saw what she looked like now...bloodied and bruised up...she just broke down crying there in front of the mirror. She just said to herself, voice breaking,  
“Why me? Why is this happening to me? Is this how the Divines are going to punish me? Make me live the rest of my life with a monster for a husband?”  
She just got a wash cloth and started to wipe away blood on her face. She winced at each contact of the cloth on her face, but eventually got it cleaned off. There were three deep scratches on her face now, they were definitely going to scar once they healed up. She also took a bath, scrubbing her body fiercely, to the point of her skin reddening. She needed his scent off her, she needed the entire feeling of him on her off of her skin, she could still feel him inside of her...it was like it was haunting her. She finished up her bath, and the bruises were now very prominent. Black and blue dotted her body. She didn't realize how long it had been until she saw the sun rising through the windows, she panicked and dressed herself into clothes and rushed downstairs to begin making his breakfast...she didn't want to suffer through another punishment by him. She made the breakfast and timed it out perfectly for it all to be done at 8 am...when he was to wake up and go to the court for the rest of the day until 8 at night. He got paid to just stand around and listen to the court's concerns and debates and to give his insight. She heard shuffling upstairs and set everything up and waited for him to come down. She tried not to show fear, but it was very difficult for her. She folded her hands and stood near the table to serve him his breakfast. She heard him come down the stairs, and tried to stop her hands and whole body from trembling. 

He smirked when he saw her standing there, and said,  
“Well, well...so you can follow simple instructions. Good to know.”  
She gulped and said, struggling to find the words,  
“A-Anything for you m-my husband...”  
“That's a good girl...nice and obedient.” he said, smiling darkly.  
He sat down at the chair at the head of the table, and she immediately started serving him his food, which was all still hot and fresh...she made sure of that. Her wound he gave her last night on her face, was now scabbed over, but would definitely scar once it was fully healed. She finished up serving him and went to go and set the dish she had in her hands back down onto the table, but he grabbed a hold of her wrist, making her gasp and he pulled her to him and forcefully kissed her on the lips, she didn't struggle...but she didn't enjoy it. He pulled away and whispered, harshly,  
“You know what to expect tonight when I get home right? And know what I expect from you?”  
She slowly nodded and he snapped at her saying,  
“I wanna hear you! Tell me you understand and what I expect.”  
She flinched and said,  
“Y-Yes...I understand and I know what to expect...and what is expected of me.”  
“Say what they are...I wanna know you fully understand...and aren't just saying what I want to hear.” he said, harshly.  
“I-I am to make you dinner...keep the house clean...and...” she trailed off, not wanting to say the last thing he wanted to hear.  
“...and what?” he asked, low and threatening.  
“...and...I'm to sleep with you...no arguments...no fighting you...” she said, defeat in her tone.  
“Good girl...once again you prove to me that you are more obedient than my previous wives and can listen better than they did.” he said, smirking at her. He felt powerful with her.  
He finished his breakfast, and walked over to the door and stood there saying,  
“Annalise...I'm leaving now. Aren't you going to see me off and kiss me goodbye like a good wife should do?”  
She scrambled over to him and she hesitantly got onto her tip toes and kissed him quickly on the lips so she could just get it done and over with. But he didn't let her get away that fast...he stopped her and had his arm wrapped tightly around her waist and he forced her to look up at him by grabbing a hold of her chin and making her look into his face and he said,  
“I wasn't satisfied with that kiss...try it again...or you're gonna get punished for it when I get home tonight...and you won't like it...it will be a repeat of last night...I promise you.”  
She was so terrified of him so she did as she was told. She hesitantly put her hands on his face and leaned up and kissed him with as much fake...but convincing compassion as she could muster. Making a groan of pleasure come from his throat, making her know that he was satisfied now. She pulled away after awhile...holding back gags, and the feeling of wanting to retch everywhere. He smirked again and said,  
“There now...that was much better. Well, I see you later on tonight...I look forward to it.”  
He had dark intentions in his deep blue eyes, and she just gulped and waited till she knew he wouldn't hear and started to gag and dry heave. She felt sickened to her stomach...she hated that man. He was a monster...an evil man. She now wishes she could have stopped marrying him from happening...but she had no say and still doesn't. Her parents were completely unaware of what happened to her behind closed doors. Erikur had a huge control over her...and she couldn't get out of it...but she wanted out...and she would stop at nothing until she was able to leave him for good and not look back. She proceeded to clean the house and all the dishes that were made...and dreaded what she would have to do when he came home tonight.


	5. Secret Lover

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Annalise attempts to end it all...but ends up gaining a lover in the process as well...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ***WARNING***  
> Suicide attempt and domestic violence are involved in this.

It's been two years...and she was still with the monster she was forced to call a husband. She had a few miscarriages over the time they've been married...all which were caused by him from all the stress and fear that she felt with him...and when he struck her in the stomach and anywhere else on her body for her “disobedience” with him. But he never knew of her pregnancies since she never told him about them. She felt like he didn't deserve to know about it. All of the pregnancies were forced anyways...she wanted a child conceived in love and compassion, not from how he did it. He was appointed a housecarl, which was a guard for his belongings and home, named Gunther. He was a nice man, nothing like Erikur and he was also a Nord man. He was also very handsome as well and pretty muscular. He was 27 years of age, had longer hair that was double braided on each side of his head and it was a light brown color, and his eyes were a very unique bluish green color. He was clad in ebony armor and had all ebony weaponry as well. She fell into a deep depression and strong feeling of hopelessness of ever leaving him and starting a new life on her own. So...she decided she would end it all. She was going to take her own life.

She was upstairs in the bathroom, and was pacing back and forth...not building up enough courage to try and go through with it. But the more she thought about how he treated her and what he made her do every night...she started to want to just end it all even more. She grabbed a hold of a steel dagger she found hidden away in a chest...and put the dagger to her wrist. The cold metal blade was pressed against her thin skin on her wrist and she thought about him and what a monster he was...and it made her just start to drag it across her skin without a second thought, she winced and dropped the blade with a clang on the floor and started to smile to herself as she thought about how free she would be after this...free of this life...free of him. She cut pretty deep...but not deep enough to where it was an instant death caused by bleeding out. Her legs began to feel wobbly and she fell to the floor, with a thud. A loud thud that caught the attention of Gunther, he became concerned and went upstairs to investigate. He then saw her on the bathroom floor slowly losing consciousness...he gasped and ran over to her and saw the bloodied dagger near her hand and the fresh and self-inflicted wound on her wrist. His eyes widened and he said, concerned,  
“Annalise! Oh gods...what did you do?”  
She tried to respond but when she opened her mouth to speak nothing came out just slight murmurs. He picked her up and brought her to the local alchemist shop and demanded they heal her with whatever they could. Her sister was not here today to witness this or hear her reasoning behind this. They worked to the best of their abilities and wrapped her wound up in bandages, stopping the bleeding. They gave her healing potions until she woke up from unconsciousness. She looked around at everyone and saw Gunther with a look of relief on his face along with a sigh of relief. She then became angered and hysterical yelling,  
“No! Why did you fucking save me?! Why?! You should have just let me die! I don't want to fucking live like this anymore!”  
Everyone tried to calm her and Gunther's eyes widened even more with how she was acting now. He's never seen her like this, but he was also unaware of Erikur treated her and put her through all the time since it has only been a few weeks being his housecarl and the fact that Erikur always dismissed him every night having him stay at the Winking Skeever. He urged everyone to leave them be for a few minutes and told them all that he would try and calm her down himself. They all nodded in acknowledgment and left them there. The door shut behind them all and Gunther approached her and asked, softly,  
“Annalise...why did you try to kill yourself?”  
She just looked up at the ceiling and stayed silent. She did not answer him right away. She was very bitter right now...she did not want to be alive. He just frowned and said,  
“Tell me what's going on...please.”  
She slowly turned her head to face him, her face still streaked with tears and said,  
“You want to know what's going on, do you? Well...I'll tell you. I've been married to Erikur for the past two years...and it's been nothing but hell I've been going through. This is not a happy marriage...not at all.”  
“You two seem fine together...but then again I've only been around for a few weeks. Do you want to tell me how it is for you? I may be able to help you.” he stated.  
She scoffed and explained to him,  
“We're far from being fine together, Gunther...it was fine a year before we were to be married...he treated me like a Queen bought me all the most expensive clothes...and jewelry. Always took me out to expensive dinners...but when we did get married...and once it was all over...he took me to his house of horrors. His whole demeanor changed once we were inside. He became cold and rude towards me. He made all these rules: I have to do what he says and what he wants me to do no matter what...he wants breakfast every morning and dinner at night when he returns home and I have to serve it to him every time...he wants a clean house when he comes home...and...he wants sex from me every night...I can't refuse, argue or fight him about it...I learned that the hard way. He rapes me...he beats me...he forced me to quit my job at the Blacksmith shop because he didn't want to be married to a 'peasant' and have his reputation muddled even more...he treats me like complete shit. I've been impregnated by him multiple times...but I miscarried every time because of the stress, fear and abuse I've been going through. This is why I tried to take my own life today...why I wanted to die...now do you understand, Gunther? Do you understand my reasoning now?”  
Gunther was silent and didn't know what to say to her. He became angry towards Erikur though and how she was treated by him. He may have only been around for a few weeks...but he grew very close to Annalise during that time. She was a very beautiful woman and a very sweet one too, he didn't understand how Erikur could do this to such a woman like herself. She deserved better...much better than Erikur. He cared for her...a lot. He finally found words to speak and said,  
“If I had known he was doing this...if he didn't send me to the Inn every night just so I don't see or hear how he really treats you...I would have killed him awhile ago and made it look like an accident. You don't deserve this, Annalise. You deserve so much better. I care about you...I care about you so much. More than words can explain...”  
She became puzzled and said,  
“What...do you mean by that?”  
“Well...I don't know if I should say anything. I don't want to endanger your life more than it already is.” he stated, looking away.  
“Just tell me...” she said.  
“I shouldn't.” he stated, again.  
“Gunther. Just. Tell. Me. I don't like being led on like this and then the person refuses to answer.” she said, pushing for him to say what he wanted to say.  
He sighed and said,  
“What do you think it means, Annalise? I care about you...a lot. So much so that I would give my life for yours...and I would kill Erikur for you...he deserves nothing but death. But, unfortunately I can't do that because I would be arrested and sentenced to death for killing my Thane. I want to be there for you all the time. At all times. I will tell Erikur I will stay every night, and lie saying it was Jarl Elisif herself who gave that order. He can't refuse an order from her especially if he wants to keep his position as Thane on her court. I will treat you the way you deserve to be treated.”   
“Are you saying that...you love me, Gunther?” she asked, eyes wide in shock.  
“In my own way...yes...I am saying that.” he stated, softness in his tone.  
“I...don't know what to say. I barely know you...but...I feel some kind of connection with you. You treat me so well and think of me as a person not just some woman that can be used and abused at any time. You make me smile...and I haven't been doing much of that with Erikur. You bring me comfort...when I need it most. You actually talk to me like I'm a person too. But...I'm married to Erikur. I don't know what we can do about this...I'm not too sure about it, but I also want it to happen.” she explained.  
“Are you telling me that you actually...love me back? Or you feel like you do?” he said, trying to hide the happiness in his tone but not very well.  
She managed to smile and said,  
“I feel something...I just don't know what it is.”   
“So...what did you want to happen with us?” he asked.  
“I don't know...I don't want to risk you or me getting killed by Erikur if he discovers anything going on between us...” she said, afraid.  
“Fuck him. He won't know anything since he's never home during the day time. We can do whatever we want to do while he's gone.” he said.  
“I can't just...be unfaithful. He'll know...and he'll punish me for it. I have duties as a wife. I must stay loyal to my husband...no matter how he treats me...I must do what is expected of me for him.” she said, becoming afraid once again.  
“No you don't. He brainwashed you, made you think that way. He's turning you into a slave. Do his cooking for him...do his cleaning for him...do this, do that. It's all bullshit. No woman should be treated this way. I swear Nord men or any other race's males all think the same. I'm not like them. I let women choose for themselves, and do what they enjoy. Not what I want them to do.” he explained.  
She was silent for awhile and after a few more minutes she spoke saying,  
“What should we do then?”  
“I think...we should give it a try. You're the most beautiful and sweetest woman I've ever had the pleasure of meeting.” he said, smiling sweetly.   
“Really? You...mean that?” she said, sounding flattered.  
“Yes. So, what do you say? Should we give us a try?” he said, smiling.  
“I-I don't want to risk anything...but...I really do want to give us a try. You seem like the man I dreamed of marrying. You make me feel happy. You make me smile. You give me more compliments than I'm used to. We just really need to keep it discreet. We can't risk our lives for this.” she said.  
“Well, you're worth the risk in my opinion.” he stated, smiling sweetly.  
That made her smile and then he grabbed a hold of her hand gently, and held it while caressing her hand with his thumb. She had very smooth skin. He brought her back to Erikur's house after she was cleared by the alchemists who helped her. They walked to his house, but did not hold hands. They did not need people to see it and tell Erikur. He would have both their heads on a platter if he found out about it. What everyone saw was a housecarl escorting his Thane's wife back home, nothing more and they wanted to keep it that way. 

They arrived back to the house and as soon as they door was shut, he put his hand on her face and caressed it gently, as he smiled sweetly at her. She closed her eyes at the feeling...she wasn't used to this gentle touching. She slowly opened her eyes again and looked into his blue-green eyes, his eyes were softened as he was looking at her, his face was content and he had then put his other hand on her face too. He was cupping her chin in his hands now. She was still pretty short compared to him, he basically towered over her. Her head stopped at his chest level and that was it. He got caught up looking into her unique bluish gray eyes, and leaned in closer making her gasp slightly and back away a little, but then he whispered to her,  
“It's alright...I would never hurt you. I'm not Erikur. I care about you...very deeply. I won't try anything if you don't want me to, okay? Just tell me and I will stop. I will never force you to do anything you don't want to do.”   
“No...please...I don't want you to stop. I-I'm sorry I reacted that way...I'm just...not used to this is all...” she said.  
“You don't need to say sorry, Annalise.” he said, gently.   
“Please, call me Anna or Ann...I don't like Annalise...that's what he calls me. So just Anna or Ann...please.” she said, quietly.  
“Of course. Anna it is then.” he said, smiling again.  
She smiled at that and urged him to continue what he was going to do. He nodded in acknowledgment and leaned down once again. She didn't move this time, and before she knew it their lips met. And it was a soft and gentle kiss...not a forced rough one. His lips were full and soft on hers. It was like they molded to fit hers. Like he was the one she should be married to. She moaned softly and wrapped her arms around his neck, hesitantly, but did eventually have them locked around his neck. They had plenty of time, Erikur was not supposed to be home for another 5 hours or so. She kissed back, but with more urgency than before. That made him moan, and the kiss intensified from there on. This was something she wanted for a long time...consensual, passionate love. He pulled away as he felt that she was now against the stone wall and said, panting,  
“Anna...are you sure about this? I don't want to make you do anything you don't want to.”  
“Gunther...please...can't you tell I want this? It's something I've been craving...consent ad gentleness...please...don't stop.” she said, sounding more aroused than anything now.   
He smiled at her tone and nodded. He continued to kiss her and made his way down to her neck and kissed her there, making her lean her head more to the side giving him more access. Her eyes were closed, and she was breathing heavier. His armor was still on so he didn't press himself too close to her body. She found straps on his curaiss, and started to undo them, she wanted his armor off and she wanted it off now. She managed to get his curaiss off and it fell to the floor with a clang and loud thud. She took in his exposed upper body, it was scarred, muscular, and he was absolutely gorgeous to her. He smirked at how she was looking at him right now and said, jokingly,  
“I know, I know...I'm just too damn sexy, right?”  
She giggled at that and smiled saying,  
“Well, it wouldn't be a lie.”  
“You flatter me, Anna.” he stated, smirking.  
She guided his hands to her dress' corset strings and urged him to take it off of her. He did just that, but nice and slow. She was enjoying every second of this new experience. He removed her corset and then slowly took her dress off, as she worked to remove his armor bottoms. Both tossed the clothing they had in their hands to the side. Now they were both very close to being fully exposed to one another. He picked her up bridal style and kissed her as he carried her to his room that he had in the house on the lower floor. It was a luxurious room like the rest of this house was, it had a noble looking double bed with red sheets and intricate designs on it. It also had various weapon racks with different types of weapons on display. He had dressers and wardrobes as well, and a fancy rug underneath the bed. He gently laid her down onto the bed, and then finished off his clothing, being fully exposed now, she bit her lower lip, trying to hide the smirk that played on her lips, but he noticed it and half-smiled. She was very welcome with him...and he was glad she was. She was a gorgeous girl, any man would be lucky to have her, so he was a pretty lucky guy to have her. 

She began removing her undergarments now, and he watched intently. She definitely had his attention even more so than before. She removed them slowly and then threw them aside, and a moan escaped his throat. She was absolutely flawless to him. She was like a goddess to him, and wondered how the hell someone like Erikur was arranged to be married to her. Erikur was not worthy of her, she deserved someone so much better and he was glad she chose him as a lover over anyone else. He again asked,  
“Are you sure about this?”  
“I'm lying naked in your bed...you're standing there naked in front of me. If this isn't enough to say how sure I am of this, I don't know what else there is to prove how much I want this.” she said, smirking.  
“I'm glad to see you trust me so much, Anna...” he said, smiling.  
She smiled back at him and after that he got into bed with her, and laid on his side next to her. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into another kiss, that was very passionate. She surprised him by laying him completely down and she crawled on top of him after he was laying flat on the bed. He raised his brows but he wasn't complaining. He liked this view of her. She was beautiful in every way: heart, mind and looks. She leaned down and kissed him as she caressed his upper body with her hands. Her long flowing hair was now off to the side of her head, and he moaned as she kissed him this way. He caressed her soft skin on her back and arms as well. After awhile she felt his excitement beneath her, and she pulled away and smirked at him. He was in ecstasy already, and she felt like she was getting to the high of her arousal too. She hasn't felt this feeling in a very long time and she just now realized how much she missed it as she was with Gunther. He sat up more, pushing himself upright with his elbows and held her in his arms while he was in a sitting position and she was in his lap. He wrapped her legs around his waist and kissed her with even more intensity than before and she kissed back the same way. Her hands were on the sides of his head, and she tangled his hair in her fingers. Both were moaning with pure pleasure now, they loved one another...and they both knew they did too. She had grown to love him over the past few weeks with him as housecarl and he grew to love her. She was just in denial since she's married to a terrifying man and feared for her own safety and Gunther's so she pushed the feelings she had of him far to the back of her mind and tried to forget them...but she couldn't and they surfaced once he had saved her life when she tried to end it all. If he wasn't there, she would have surely died by her own hand. She was angry and bitter at first but once he started to talk to her and told her everything about how he felt about her...her own personal feelings of him had resurfaced...and they were definitely showing now.

He laid her back down onto the bed and was on top of her now. The kiss had just intensified even more. He kissed her neck, her chest, her stomach...everywhere. He wanted to kiss every inch of her body just to savor how she moaned every time he did so. Her moans were music to his ears, and his moans were music to hers. She was panting and said,  
“Gunther...I want you. Please...take me now.”  
“As you wish, Anna...and I promise you I'll be gentle.” he said, panting.   
He repositioned himself in between her legs and she opened them a little more for him. He gently and slowly entered her. She let out a gasp and moan at the entrance, and so did he. She absolutely loved the feeling she was having with him. It was all she ever wanted in a relationship and/or marriage, but she was cursed with a monster for a husband instead of blessed with a kind, gentle man like Gunther. He moved his hips slowly at first until she urged him to pick the pace up a little. Which he gladly obliged. He leaned down and kissed her neck, and she put her hands in his hair and again tangled her fingers into it. She liked his hair, it was actually surprisingly very soft she expected it to be coarse since he was a burly Nord man, and their hair was usually pretty coarse. He slid his left hand all the way down the side of her bare body and grabbed a hold of her thigh and pulled it up and wrapped it around his waist, making him go deeper causing them both to let out groans and moans of pleasure. Her hair was fanned out all around her, and he pulled away to admire her beauty more. He drank it in like sweet mead. She was scarred from Erikur's barbaric acts on her, but he thought she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen and he would always think that way of her no matter what. She had her hands on his back and she again urged him to pick up the pace with her leg around his waist, making him smirk because of her urgency. He gave her what she wanted, and this caused them to both get closer to their climax. After a couple more thrusts, they both reached the end of their pleasure and this caused them both to become very loud and scream one another's names. He exited her and collapsed next to her, both had sweat beading their bodies, and were panting with their eyes closed. She got onto her side and leaned on her elbow putting her hand on the side of her head and the other hand on his chest. Gunther said, still panting,  
“Holy shit...”  
“You're telling me...” she purred, while drawing shapes on his chest with her fingers.  
He opened his eyes and looked at her and got onto his side, and kissed her passionately once more. He pulled away putting his forehead against hers and said, suggestively,  
“I could go for another round with you...”  
“Down there boy...you already wore me out. I don't think I could go another round.” she said, smiling playfully.  
She looked outside and saw it was getting later. She then panicked and shot upright and scrambled out of the room and grabbed every piece of discarded clothing they had strewn about the house. She handed him his armor and weapons back, and she redressed into her clothing frantically. He hated seeing her like this...he wanted to kill Erikur so badly for her...as violently and slowly as possible. He put his armor back on but not without watching her every step and action she did with a look of sadness on his face. She was starting to frantically make that asshole's dinner, and she looked terrified. Her whole demeanor from just a few minutes ago with him had changed from happiness to fear. He was now fully redressed in his Ebony armor and had his Ebony greatsword sheathed on his back again along with his dagger and sword on his hip. His bow and arrows were still in his room against the wall. He just saw her in the kitchen being fearful and keep glancing at the door just in case he came home a little earlier than usual...he's done it before. This time...he was not going to get Gunther to leave. He'll insist on staying and saying it was Jarl Elisif's orders for him to stay there at all times to guard Erikur and all of his property in the house. But Gunther was only doing it for Annalise...his one and only true love. He's had girls in his life before...but nothing as special or amazing as it was with her. Just temporary women that basically only slept with him because he was not a bad looking guy at all, and the women were only with him for the sex and his looks. He never got really attached to any of them...but it was much different with Annalise, and he loved the feeling of it. 

He just wishes she wasn't married to Erikur it would make their relationship even better and she would never be afraid of anything. He is her protection more than he is Erikur's. She was still preparing dinner and he said, to her,   
“Please...let me help you. He won't know the difference of who cooked what. I know how to cook pretty well, but I just wish it was for us and not that bastard of a husband you have.”  
“No...I have to cook this all. H-He'll know...” she said, stuttering. The Annalise he had not too long ago was no longer here...her old, fearful self returned. He walked over to her and started to help saying,  
“He's a fucking idiot...he definitely won't know. Just because he's rich and basically owns every shop in this city, doesn't mean he's smart enough to figure it out. I want to help you as much as I can. As far as I'm concerned you're my Thane not fucking Erikur. He doesn't deserve a housecarl. If he so much as touches you in any way tonight whether it be harmful or not...I will tear his fucking head off.”  
“N-No! Y-You can't do anything if he touches me, he'll have you arrested or killed if you threaten him in any way.” she stated, fear in her voice.  
“Do you think I give a shit about what he does about it if I do? No man should ever hit or rape their wives or girlfriends. He treats you like a fucking slave, Anna.” he said, all seriousness in his tone and expression.  
“Gunther please...promise me you won't get in his way...please...” she said, almost on the verge of tears.   
“I'm not promising anything. I can't promise anything.” he stated.  
“Please! I can't lose you...just stay out of his way...I can't bear the thought of being without you. You're the first man I've ever had a real, true connection with.” she said, tears brimming her eyes now.  
He was silent for awhile, and sighed saying,  
“Alright, Anna...I won't. But, I swear...if I hear or see him hurting you...I can't promise that I won't rush in and kick the living shit out of him.”  
“No, Gunther...you can't get involved. That's the only way you won't get killed or arrested. Just please...don't do anything rash...” she pleaded.  
He stayed silent, closed his eyes and sighed just nodding his head. He couldn't stand the thought of Erikur hurting her and him just standing by being useless. He helped her with the rest of the meal she was making for him and once it was all done he cleaned the kitchen and made it spotless he was only doing this for her and to protect her from any punishment Erikur would want to inflict on her for “finding a mistake” that she had made. She set the table up and he went back to his room so he could just act like he was just walking out of there once Erikur entered through the door. He had to put on a “housecarl act” for him so he had to treat him respectfully and address him respectfully too, and act like he didn't have a burning rage of hatred stirring in his body for the man. Just as she finished setting up the table, the prick came strolling in the door. Gunther glared at him briefly, and then shook it off and said, trying not to sound too unconvincing,   
“It's good to see you again, my Thane.”  
Erikur just acknowledged him with a lazy nod of his head and a fake smile on his face while he did it. He sniffed the air and said,  
“Hmm. That smells great. Annalise...where are you my dear wife?”  
She came rushing over to him, she had cleaned herself up just before he walked in, so she smelled normal and it didn't raise any suspicions he may have had if she hadn't cleaned up. She stuttered, hands folded in front of her,  
“H-Hello my husband. How was your day?”  
“Great. I gave the Jarl so many pointers on how to improve the businesses around here. She took in all my suggestions and I'm pretty sure they'll pull through, I am a genius when it comes to business after all. Oh and Annalise...?” he said, trailing off as if she was supposed to know something.  
“Y-Yes, Erikur?” she asked.  
“Aren't you forgetting something...dear?” he said, sounding threatening but trying to hide it. Gunther wasn't convinced.  
She flinched and rushed over to him again and kissed him on the lips with all the fake passion she could manage. Erikur than wrapped his one arm around her waist and made her stay there longer by pinning her there. He pulled away and had a dark smile on his face and said,  
“Time for dinner...”  
He let go of her and she gagged when he wasn't looking. He had stuck his tongue down her throat while she kissed him. Gunther saw this and became even more angry at Erikur. She rushed over to serve him his food and Gunther just kept his distance because if he was any closer to that monster...he would grab a knife or fork and just repeatedly stab him in the neck making him choke and die on his own blood. He smirked darkly at the thought of it all, he would very much like to do that to him right now. But...he held back with it reluctantly. 

After Erikur finished his dinner, he said to her,  
“That was actually very good...your cooking is improving at least. I guess all my punishments are working on you, huh?”  
He chuckled darkly after he said that. He didn't think that was loud enough for Gunther to hear but it was. He clenched his jaw and balled his hands into fists. He held back everything...his anger, his hatred and the need to kill Erikur. He then heard Annalise yelp slightly and that made him hurry and see what was happening. He then saw Erikur had a tight grip on her wrist and had her pulled down to his eye level while he was sitting in the chair. He heard Erikur say,  
“You know what's going to happen tonight right? What is expected of you?”  
“Y-Yes! I understand...I know what you expect of me, husband.” she said, trying to hide the fear in her tone.  
“Good...now...what will there be none of?” Erikur asked, smirking darkly.  
“Th-There will be no fighting you...no refusing you...I must do what you want me to do.” she said, voice shaky as if she would cry at any second now.  
“Very good. I expect you to live up to those expectations tonight. Now, get this all cleaned up, and come straight upstairs when you're done down here...we have an heir to try and make...”   
She just nodded her head slowly, and began to clean. Gunther waited until Erikur was for sure all the way upstairs. He rushed over to her and immediately checked her wrist that Erikur had grabbed a hold of so harshly. It was reddened and slightly bruised as well. He clenched his jaw looking up at her and she said, tears brimming her eyes,  
“I-It's fine...it's only a temporary thing...nothing major...”  
“Nothing major...? Don't make any excuses for that son of a bitch. He hurts you every damn night. I'm not promising to hold back anything I want to do to him for long. I'll do it for now, but if it gets progressively worse I will step in and do something about it.” he said, concern and worry in his eyes for her.  
“Gunther...please. I have to finish cleaning...and I have to go upstairs after. He's waiting for me...if I take too long he'll get angry at me again.” she said.  
“I'll help you clean this all up. You shouldn't have to be the only one who cleans and cooks around here.” he said, softly.

She just smiled and nodded. He helped her clean up and she looked even more afraid now. She needed to go upstairs to that monster, and he had to let it happen or Erikur would hurt her worse than he already does. Gunther went back to his room and felt nothing but regret and worry for letting her go up there to him. But Erikur came down the stairs shortly after and said, to Gunther,  
“Here. Take this purse and get yourself a room at the Inn, there's extra in there for food and drink if you wish to have those too.”  
“I must politely decline, Thane. I was given strict orders by Jarl Elisif to stay here and guard you and your belongings at all times.” said Gunther, holding back his anger and the want to just punch him right in his disgusting face.  
“Oh? And might I ask when she gave you these orders?” asked Erikur, jeering.  
“Just earlier today. Around three o'clock. I was given a message by a royal courier.” stated Gunther.  
“Right. Well, where is this message then?” asked Erikur, sounding suspicious.   
“He only told me verbally. There was no written message.” stated Gunther, still sounding very convincing.  
“Well...if she ordered you to stay here at all times I guess I can't refuse her orders...just don't get in my way.” he said, not very thrilled.  
“Of course, sir.” Gunther said, fake smile on his face.  
“Now, if you'll excuse me...I have to get back to my wife.” said Erikur, dark smirk on his face.  
As he was walking away from Gunther, the smile he was faking was now gone and he was just glaring at him now. He was so angry that he couldn't do anything to help her if he heard her getting hurt by Erikur. He just shut his door and sat on his bed. The walls may have been impenetrable from the outside of the house, but they weren't on the inside. The walls were actually rather thin along with the floors and everything would be heard...everything he didn't want to hear.

As he was still sitting on his bed, he heard nothing but Annalise's cries of pain and him yelling at her, along with hitting her. He couldn't stand doing nothing about this. He was shaking his leg, had his hands folded, and his head was down as he faced the floor. He was actually getting very upset as he was hearing all of this going on. He heard everything that was said. Erikur was heard saying,  
“What the fuck did I tell you not to do, bitch?!”  
Annalise was then heard, crying hysterically and saying,  
“F-Fight you...or r-refuse you!”  
“And what are you doing?!” he yelled back at her.  
“What you told me not to do! Y-You're hurting me, and it's just a natural reaction...I-I'm sorry, Erikur!” she cried.  
“Do you think I care that I'm hurting you?! Because I really could care less. You need to give me an heir and if you keep doing what you're doing...I'll make sure I always make it hurt! All that matters is that you give me an heir!” he yelled at her.  
Gunther, was fuming right now. He wanted to so badly just run up there and get him off of her and just bash his fucking head in until he was no longer moving and he was covered in Erikur's blood. That would be the greatest day of both Annalise's and his lives. After about another 20 minutes or so...all the cries and yelling stopped. All that was heard now was Annalise's soft, hoarse sobs. One of these days...one of these days...he would get exactly what's coming to him...and Gunther would be honored to be the one to provide that final blow...or even better if Annalise was the one to do so. That would be the ultimate karma for an asshole like him...

Gunther could not sleep well that night, all he did was fantasize about all the ways that he wanted to kill Erikur...and he smiled at every one of them.


	6. Sick Of It

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gunther is sick of Erikur's ways of treating Annalise and he tries to convince her to run away with him and not look back...
> 
> Smut is involved in this! ;)

Annalise was awake before Erikur to make his breakfast for him like always. She bared fresh bruises on her wrists, upper arms, neck, and thighs once again. Her left eye was blackened around it. She had cuts, on her body and face again. Her lip was busted and had dry blood on it. She fought him off again, but she shouldn't have. She would have walked out unscathed for the most part at least. She was sore all over her body. She could barely move while making his breakfast, but she pulled through just to make sure he had everything hot and fresh once he woke up. Gunther woke up shortly after she did, and approached her in the kitchen, she refused to turn around and face him. She didn't want him to see how she looked. She was ashamed of being stupid and fighting him off again. Gunther decided to wear regular clothes today, since his armor tended to get a little overbearing at times, but he still had his dagger sheathed on his hip. The clothes he wore weren't anything fancy or formal, just causal. It was actually just a plain miner's shirt and plain black pants along with plain black boots. He approached her and already had a saddened look on his face. 

He said, softly to her,  
“Anna...please look at me.”  
“N-No...I don't want you to see what I look like. It's my own fault he hurt me last night...I fought him like I said I wouldn't do...and I got punished for it. I-It's my fault...all my fault...” she said, voice breaking like she was about to cry.  
“Don't you dare blame yourself for what that fucking prick did to you. It was all him. You did nothing wrong. You did what you felt was right...you fought him and tried to refuse him. He just got pissed off like a spoiled fucking child that didn't get what he wanted, and took it out on you. Like a coward. Only cowards hurt others that have done them no wrong.”  
“That's what I like about you the most Gunther. You always try to make me gain my confidence and make me feel better. You...heard everything last night...didn't you?” she said, still not facing him and was still making Erikur's breakfast.  
He gently put a hand on her shoulder and slowly turned her to face him. She kept her head down and he put his other hand underneath her chin and lifted her head to face him. He became very angered once he saw how she looked. He said, low and angry,  
“That fucking bastard...he's going to get what's coming to him. I can't promise not to get involved in anything that he does to you, I will definitely make sure he gets what he deserves.”   
“W-What? No, Gunther...I told you...you can't.” she said, afraid.  
“No, Anna. I will. He deserves what I have planned for him...and I'll make sure it's nice and painful.” he said, serious.  
She didn't say anything and he helped her finish breakfast. Once everything was done, it was all hot and fresh. He went back to his room's entrance and acted like he was just coming out and Erikur came down the stairs shortly after. She rushed over to the table and started to set it up for him. He sat in his usual chair. She was still silent and said nothing. Gunther knew how terrified she was of him, and he just wanted to end it for her. Make him pay for all the horrible things he's done to her over the last few years they've been married to one another. He just wanted to do it right now...but he knew he couldn't for the safety of Annalise. This wasn't going to last much longer with him though...he wouldn't just stand by and do nothing forever.

Erikur finally finished his breakfast and of course made Annalise see him off again. She was of course very reluctant to do so. She did it to please him and make him happy, and so he didn't hurt her again. As soon as he was out the door she turned around and went to the kitchen to start cleaning, Gunther was already in there cleaning up. He smiled at her and she gave him a small smile, and when she tried to start cleaning something he said, to her,  
“Don't worry about this mess. I'll get it. You aren't a slave and shouldn't do what he tells you at all. You go get some well deserved rest.”   
“Really? A-Are you sure? I can get this.” she said.  
He just looked at her and said,  
“No. You won't get this. I will. Go rest, Anna.”  
She smiled at that and said,  
“Thank you, Gunther.”  
Before she went to go rest, he approached her and put his hands on her face, and gently kissed her lips. She returned the kiss, but it seemed more urgent with her. He didn't mind it but he knew she was probably very sore because of Erikur, so he pulled away and said, forehead against hers and eyes closed,  
“Anna...you know I won't be able to stop myself if we take this further than it's already going.”  
“I know...but I want it to go further.” she said, hands on his chest.  
“I know you're sore. You could barely move this morning...are you absolutely sure about this?” he said, still worried he might hurt her.  
“Yes...please, continue...you won't hurt me.” she said, sounding filled with desire.  
That was enough for both of them to get back into an intense lip lock. She had her arms around his neck and pulled him closer to her, while his hands rested on her hips and he caressed her sides gently. This kiss was more intense than their first one that they shared, he pulled away panting. He cleared everything off of the table behind them with one quick swipe of his arm making them all fly to the ground and across the room with loud thuds and clangs. He then surprised her by gently but also pretty urgently lifting her up and setting her down onto the same table he just cleared off. She gasped but smirked afterwords seeing what he was getting at, he was now directly in front of her as she sat on the table, which was thankfully low enough for them to still continue their passion. He put his hands back on her hips, and she had hers on his chest once again, both were panting but Annalise initiated another kiss with him making them both moan in response. She was then felt tugging at the front of his shirt, but neither one broke the kiss. He started to pull at the material on her dress too, no corset this time so it made it easier for both of them for him to remove it. He had to pull away to pull the dress up and over her head again as gently as he could, but it was also quite urgent. He threw it aside and again locked his lips with hers. As he was kissing her, she was still trying to get his shirt off but he just got a hold of it himself and just tore it off...literally. She smirked under his lips at that. 

He slid his hands all the way down her sides to her panties, and untied both ends. He pulled away but had his lips less than inch away from hers as he did this though, and as soon as they were off, she went for his pants next. He smirked and let her do what she wanted and she opened them just enough for him to be able to work his magic on her. She felt him shift a little more and then she felt his member near her entrance, she was anxiously awaiting him. She wrapped her legs around his waist and pulled him to her, making him enter her at the same time. They both moaned at the feeling, and she had her arms locked around his neck again. His hands were both supporting her legs by holding them in place around his waist. He kissed her neck as he was taking her. Both of their breaths were heavier, and she still kept her legs locked around his waist. She was urging him to go faster and he did just that. He then lifted her up off of the table and brought her to his room. He laid her down onto the bed, getting on top of her and re-entering her making them both moan loudly. She surprised him by switching their positions making her the one on top now. She immediately started to ride him, pretty fast for her current state. His hands roamed her body caressing her everywhere he could. The way she was moving her hips and grinding against him made both of them closer to the edge. Both were screaming in pleasure at this point. 

His climax came and so did hers. Both let out groans and moans of relief and pleasure as they finished up with one another. She lifted herself up and collapsed next to him. Both were of course smiling and panting with sweat beading their bodies. She got onto her side and cuddled closer to him, and leaned up to kiss his lips. He of course kissed her back. He said, softly,  
“Gods...I love you so much, Anna.”  
She was happy to hear that and said, softly,  
“I love you too, Gunther. More than you know and more than I thought I did.”  
He smiled and said,  
“What do you mean by that, love?”  
“Well...I wasn't sure of my feelings of you at first...but after how amazing it's been with you for the last few days...I know now, that I do love you. I love you very much. I can't see myself with anyone else but you. But...Erikur...is keeping me from you.” she explained.  
He was very happy to hear her finally say it to him and realize that their feelings for one another were in fact true and that they were really in love with one another and not just the feeling the other gave to them. He said, caressing her cheek with the back of his hand,  
“You don't have to stay here with him...let's leave here. He doesn't need either of us here. He probably won't even care if we leave.”   
“I-I can't just do that. He'll care if I leave...he won't stop until he finds me and kills me himself just for leaving him and being 'disobedient' to him by doing so. I-I'm sorry, Gunther...I can't just leave here. He'll kill me...and you.” she explained, saddened.  
“If you stay here, he's just going to hurt you more and more. You can't stay here and just let him use and abuse you all the time. He could kill you one of these days.” he said.  
She stayed silent with that response and looked like she was thinking about something. But then she snapped out of it, becoming afraid and looked out the window once again seeing it was maybe mid-day. She calmed down and relaxed once more, and he sighed saying,  
“I hate seeing you terrified like this. I want to get you out of here, Anna.”  
“I-I can't leave...I can't. I've told you why.” she said, sounding very afraid.  
“I know why. And that's exactly why I want to get you out of here.” he said.  
She was silent again and just sat up and put her head in her hands. She was so conflicted. A big part of her wanted to go with Gunther and leave this place not looking back, but the part of her was so terrified of leaving and was making her stay in this hell house. Gunther sat up and comforted her by rubbing her back and holding her in his arms. He kissed her lips softly, and she returned the kiss quickly, causing them to get ready for another round with one another. They had plenty of time, so why not? It was just as good as their first round too. 

Once they finished up again, she cleaned herself up and got redressed and they both started to cook dinner. Neither one of them wanted to do this for that asshole but they had to just so Annalise wasn't hurt for not obeying him. He was back in his armor now. Erikur came home and acted like his usual prick self. He ate his dinner, treated Annalise like trash again and made her go upstairs with him again. Gunther wanted to stop her and wanted her to stay with him but he knew he couldn't do a damn thing in fear of him killing her. He had to listen to all the disgusting and harmful things he did to Annalise once again. He was pissed off beyond belief and he couldn't do anything...it was starting to get old. He would get involved one of these days...he just didn't know when yet. But he'll do it soon enough...and it will land him in some hot water and some deep, deep trouble...


	7. Unexpected Discovery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Annalise figures out some great news, but all that happiness will be gone soon enough...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I AM SO SORRY FOR THE DELAY ON THIS!! :( :(  
> I hope you like it anyways...it has a pretty sad twist though :\
> 
> Warning: contains domestic violence, and a rape is implied.

It's been a few weeks and Annalise missed her period that was supposed to happen some time last week. She didn't need a doctor to tell her what that meant. She was pregnant. She's experienced this in the past with...that prick. He had gotten her pregnant but him not knowing or having any decency whatsoever caused her to miscarry every time. She already knew whose baby it was as well, she did the math and it all fell on the day she slept with Gunther twice in a row. It was definitely not Erikur's child. She needed to keep this on the down low...but if he happened to find out or figure out that she was with child. She would just tell him that it was his. But she was rather excited that she would finally be able to carry a child to full term instead of that joy being ripped away from her by Erikur once again. She didn't think she would be able to become pregnant with how many times she miscarried, so this baby was a little miracle to her. Erikur had just finished up his breakfast, she saw him off again...reluctantly and she began cleaning up. Gunther was there in a heartbeat to help her clean everything up. He was wearing regular clothes again, but had his dagger and sword sheathed on his hip this time.

She smiled at him and he smiled back. She was not as hurt as she was the other day, but that was only because she followed all of Erikur's orders in the bedroom for her last night. Gunther spoke, breaking the silence,  
“You seem...content today. I'm glad to see that you are.”  
“I actually am...surprisingly. Gunther...I have to tell you something.” she said, still cleaning up as she spoke.  
“What is it, my love?” he asked, smiling.  
“I'm pregnant.” she stated simply, but was smiling.  
“What? How do you know this? Are you absolutely sure?” he asked, worried that it was Erikur's baby not his.  
“Well...I missed my period. And I don't need a doctor to tell me what that means.” she said.  
“Is it...his baby?” he asked, sounding upset.  
“No. I know it isn't. Because I did the math and it all falls on the day you and I slept together twice in a row. My love...this baby is yours. I feel it in my heart.” she said, happy tears brimming her eyes.  
“How can you be so sure of that, Anna?” he asked.  
“Because when I figured it out...I wasn't upset about it. I didn't feel dread in having to carry this baby around for 9 months like I did before when I miscarried so many times. When I knew it was that monster's child in the past. I was happy. I was so happy. I knew then...that this baby is yours, Gunther.” she said, happy tears falling down her cheeks.  
That lit his face up and he rushed over to her and scooped her up into his arms and twirled her around once while kissing her and put her back onto her feet without breaking their kiss. He pulled away and put his forehead against hers as they shared this wonderful news together. He smiled and said,  
“You just made me an even happier man. I'm going to be a father...” he said, happily.  
“Yes you are. And I know you'll be a great one.” she said.  
“I hope so. But...what if Erikur finds out? Won't he kill you for carrying my child instead of his?” he said, worried.  
“He won't know. I'll lie and say the baby is his. He couldn't kill me then.” she said.  
“But it won't stop him from hurting you in other ways, Anna. He is a monster that much has been proven in my time here. And a fucking prick like him won't care if you're pregnant or not. He's still going to hurt you.” he said.  
“I-I know that...but if I tell him it's his baby he won't hurt me too much...” she said.  
“Hurt you too much? This is Erikur the asshole we're talking about. He will hurt you no matter what.” he explained.  
She stayed silent because she knew he was right. Erikur didn't care. He wouldn't care. He would hurt her, but probably not her stomach area. She just kissed Gunther and gave him a reassuring smile after pulling away. She started to finish up cleaning and he helped out and didn't let her lift anything heavy. She giggled and said,  
“You know I can lift stuff right now right? I'm only a week pregnant, love.”  
“I know but I don't want you to lift anything not now. You're pregnant with our child. I don't want you or the baby to get hurt.” he said, smiling.  
They spent the rest of the day in one another's arms and relaxing in his bed. She was of course trying to get a little “risque” with him, and he just chuckled and said,  
“Really, Anna? You're pregnant...and you're still trying to seduce me?”  
“Well...yeah. It usually works on you, doesn't it?” she said, laughing after.  
“You aren't wrong there...you're my weakness I can't help it.” he said, chuckling again.  
“So? Is it gonna work on you if I keep going with it?” she asked, flirty.  
“I don't know if it will this time.” he stated.  
“Aw...really?” she asked, sounding defeated.  
He laughed and said,  
“You look like a little puppy who was denied a treat by it's owner.”  
“I do?” she asked.  
“Yes you do. But it just makes me love you more.” he said, smiling sweetly.  
She smiled at that and just accepted the fact that she wasn't getting any from him right now. Which made her very sad. But she let it go and just continued to talk and laugh with him all day until it was time for her to start cooking dinner for...him. 

Gunther of course helped her cook. She was not as terrified as she usually was of his return, but she was still scared of him. She would tell him about the pregnancy this time, but only if he seems like he's to hit her again. She served him his dinner like always, and Gunther stayed in his room, but still watched everything closely, he was leaning against the entrance to his room with his arms crossed. Once he saw Erikur stand up out of his chair and grab a hold of Annalise around her waist, Gunther's hand automatically went to the hilt of his sword. He was not going to sit by tonight...he would do something this time. No one would tell him otherwise. She was now pregnant with his child. He needed to protect them both no matter what the risk was. She looked afraid and he saw Erikur just forcefully kiss her again. After awhile he pulled away and grabbed a handful of her long, dark locks and pull her head back to make her neck more exposed to him, and he started to kiss it roughly. Her face was showing pain on it. He grabbed a hold of her wrist now and started yanking her up the stairs almost making her fall over a few times. Gunther followed suit, and made sure Erikur didn't see him. He stayed at the end of the stairs and listened for any signs of him becoming more violent with her. 

After about 10 minutes of silence, it happened...he heard Erikur become angry with her. He was heard yelling,  
“What the fuck is wrong with you?! You were so obedient last night, and now...you're fighting me again?!”   
A slap was heard and a scream from Annalise was heard along with a thud as she fell to the ground. Gunther ran up into action then. He was now near their bedroom door, hand still on the hilt of his sword. He peered around the corner and saw Erikur grab another handful of her hair, and yanked her up from the ground, and slammed her back against the wall and she made a yelp as he did that. Erikur said, low and threatening,  
“I guess I have to teach you another fucking lesson then...don't I?”   
“N-No...Erikur, please...” she said, crying now.  
Just as he drew his hand back that was balled into a fist, like he was about to jab punch her in the stomach, she naturally reacted and covered her stomach with her hands. He noticed this and said,  
“What? What the hell are you doing with your hands, bitch?”   
“Don't hit me there! Anywhere but there!” she cried out.  
As soon as he was about to say something else, Gunther came out of the shadows, and drew his sword pointing it straight at Erikur with a look of anger, frustration and pure seriousness on his face. Erikur slowly turned around and saw Gunther with an ebony sword pointing it straight at his face. Erikur asked, angered,  
“What the fuck do you think you're doing, housecarl?”  
“What does it look like I'm doing you fucking prick?” said Gunther, low and serious.  
“It looks like you forget who the fuck I am. I can have you arrested for this you know.” said Erikur, smirking darkly.  
“Go ahead. Call the guards. These walls are impenetrable from the outside, remember?” Gunther responded, smirking.  
“Why the fuck do you care what I do with my wife? She's my property. I do whatever I want to do to her. I make sure she does everything I want her to do and sometimes she refuses to do it...so I have to teach her a lesson!” Erikur snapped.  
“She's not your goddamned property! She is no one's property! And you want to know why I care...” he yelled, and edged closer to Erikur with his sword, “...it's because I love her!”   
Erikur's eyes widened and so did Annalise's. She was afraid as to what Erikur would do to him now. He slowly turned to face Annalise and exchanged glances between her and him. He became angry again and yelled,  
“Are you pregnant with HIS baby, you fucking slut?!”  
“N-No! Th-This baby is yours, Erikur! Not his, I promise! I swear to the gods it's yours!” she exclaimed, out of fear.   
Erikur was then sliced his arm with his sword, making him let go of her. Gunther then put his arm around Annalise and put her behind his back to protect her. Erikur was still fuming and yelled out,  
“YOU'RE GOING TO FUCKING PAY FOR THIS, GUNTHER!”

He shoved past them both and ran to the door, they followed after him and Annalise was crying her eyes out because she knew Erikur was going to have him arrested for attacking him and for sleeping with her behind his back. His “property.” Gunther just chased after him and again hit him with his sword in the back this time. Making him cry out again and once he got to the door he slammed it open and yelled out,  
“GUARDS! GUARDS! I'M BEING ATTACKED! MY HOUSECARL HAS TURNED AGAINST ME!”  
The guards came rushing in. There had to be about 5 or 6 of them. They all had their weapons drawn and one of the guards ordered,  
“Stop! In the name of the Jarl!”  
“Surrender now or face the Jarl's justice!” ordered another one.  
“Guards! Arrest this man! He's been sleeping with my wife while I'm gone during the day and he tried to kill me!” yelled out Erikur, like a spoiled little child that didn't get his way.  
“Of course, sir. You there! Surrender! A nice, long time in Castle Dour dungeon will straighten you right up...I've seen that place bend the will of even the strongest men. Now...drop your weapon and come with us.” said a guard, to Gunther.  
Gunther looked at all the guards and refused to drop his weapon. Another guard said,  
“Drop it! Or we will use force!”  
Gunther still did not budge. He just sighed and whispered, to himself,  
“I'm sorry, Anna...I failed you...”  
The guards then became impatient and used force with him. They forced him to his knees and shackled his wrists. They yanked him up to his feet with the excess chain on the shackles. As they walked past Erikur, he had nothing but a dark, and evil smirk on his face as he held his arm that was still bleeding. Gunther saw the opportunity and spit in his face as they walked past and he was still close enough to do so, this made Erikur wince and growl in frustration. Gunther yelled out, to Erikur as he was being escorted to the dungeon,  
“Fuck you, you prick! You're nothing but a monster! You just beat your wife all the time because you're a fucking coward who can only beat women to feel empowered! You're not a real man!”  
The guards that were still near Erikur, kind of glanced at him when Gunther yelled that out. Like they couldn't believe he could do something like that. One of them decided to ask,  
“Do you beat your wife, sir?”  
“That's none of your goddamn business, guard! Just do your fucking job and keep your nose out of my business! Also give that prisoner a fucking life sentence. No bail will be in his future.” he snapped, he then slapped two very swollen coin purses into the guards' hands and went back to his house and the guards acted like they never heard Gunther say that and just went about their business. Erikur was now returning back to his very terrified wife...

Once he came back to the house he yelled out, sounding psychotic,  
“Oh, honeyyyyy! I'm hoooome!”  
She was hiding upstairs in a darkened corner, sitting in a fetal position and with tears streaming down her face. She was heartbroken and very terrified. She knew Gunther was arrested...and will be in there for a long, long time maybe even killed. She broke down at just the thought of losing him. She would never love again if that happened. She was still crying and cried harder once she heard him coming up the stairs. Out of habit now, she guarded her stomach area since he was coming closer now. Then...he entered the room where she was at. She was still in her darkened corner and he was looking around the room, still holding his arm, and hobbling slightly because of his injuries that Gunther inflicted on him. The look on his face was just that of dark intentions and an evil smirk. He called out, while still trying to find her,  
“Annalise...I know you're in here. I can feel your fear...it's thick in the air. You don't have your...lover...here to save you now. He won't be able to save you from me ever again...he's going to be in Castle Dour dungeon for a very long time. And I promise you...I have a lot of plans for your punishment for being unfaithful to me. I won't touch your stomach area...but only because you're carrying our child and my future heir. It's about fucking time you bared me an heir, bitch. I thought you were sterile or something...but that's the only thing you'll be good for: Birthing my children and being my very own personal slave to do whatever I wish to and to make do whatever I want you to.”  
She still protected her stomach, but didn't move an inch. But...he found her. He said, smirking darkly,  
“Ah...there you are...my dear wife. Get the fuck up...”  
She didn't say a word and just stayed there on the ground, frozen with fear. This angered him and he yelled,  
“I SAID GET THE FUCK UP, BITCH!”  
She flinched and she scrambled to her feet. He just jeered at her as she stood up. He was still pissed off about some other man fucking his property while he was gone, but since he already took care of Gunther...it was her turn. He said, low and threatening,  
“How long have you been fucking him behind my back, whore?”  
She hesitated to answer, still protecting her stomach, and couldn't find the words to say to this horrible man in front of her. This made him grow impatient and more angry and he rushed over to her. Her eyes widened and she quickly backed away but was stopped by the wall and he slammed his hands on the wall behind her, trapping her there. Her hands never left her stomach. His face was now inches away from hers, which made her turn her head away but she still glanced at him from the corner of her eye. She was breathing heavily, and her heart was racing in fear. She felt his disgusting, hot breath on the side of her face and neck. He yelled, right in her ear,  
“HOW LONG?!”   
She let out a yelp and stuttered,  
“For the last few weeks!”  
He gritted his teeth, and gave her the coldest glare. She was shaking with fear...and all of a sudden he slapped her very hard across the face with the back of his hand, making her stumble and cry out in pain. He said, darkly, in her ear,  
“The last few weeks?! You fucking slut...you unfaithful bitch!”  
She was again crying very hysterically and was still protecting her stomach. She wanted so badly to say what she wanted to say to Erikur...she wanted so badly to tell him like it is...but her fear of him overwhelmed everything else she felt. He continued to speak to her very harshly. He spoke again,  
“You just think you can fuck whoever you want to, cunt?! All the while being my wife?! You're just another common whore...just like you were before we married. I should have fucking known you would never change. Once a whore...always a whore!”  
He again slapped her hard across the face this time on the other side of her face, making her cry out again. She said, between sobs,  
“P-Please...”  
“Please what, bitch?! This is part of your fucking punishment. You have no room for pleas of mercy! You obviously need more training by me. I thought I had you taught and made to do what I say...but no, you're just the same fucking slut you were before we married.” he said to her, angry.  
He grabbed her by the hair again making her yelp and threw her to the ground, she stopped herself from falling completely by using one hand to balance herself so she didn't land on her stomach while the other still protected it.

He was getting off on this because she heard a low groan escape his throat. She became afraid and snapped her head around to look at him, he edged closer to her and as she tried to move away, he stomped his foot onto the back of her leg on her right calf, and that made her scream because she could have sworn she heard a crack or snap come from her leg. She whimpered as she tried to get out from under his foot. He grabbed her hair again and this time yanked her to her feet and pulled her back towards him, her back was pressed against him now, and he put his lips near her ear as he pulled her head back more to where her ear was right next to them and whispered,  
“All this fear and pain I'm causing...makes me want to punish you in my most favorite way of doing so.”  
She knew what he meant...he was going to rape her again. She struggled to break free and screamed for help. But...no one would hear and if they did they would most likely just ignore it since he had every guard in this city paid off. He just chuckled darkly and said,  
“Go ahead and scream for help. No one will pay you any mind even if they do happen to hear you...”  
He pulled her towards the wall next to them, and had her facing it. He pushed her forward and her head was turned toward the left. He began to rip her clothes again, and she just couldn't even attempt to fight back. But she cried out a lot and did try to break free, but couldn't since he would just push her back up against the wall. Her hands were forced away from her stomach and he pinned them against the wall. She heard him start to undo his clothing, and she again tried to wriggle free, but he then pinned her arms painfully behind her back, pushing her chest more up against the wall, and she was no longer mobile. At this point he didn't care that she was pregnant...he was going to hurt her in his most favorite, sadistic way possible. 

He started to violently violate her, and with no warning. She was in so much pain, and she was screaming for help the entire time. She wanted him out of her...now. He was being very relentless with his actions. He gave no care as to what she was feeling. He was a sadistic monster. He got off on harming others...he was not a real man. Real men would never do this to their own wives or any lover they had. She was in tears right now. Once he finished with her, he just let her go and let her slide to the ground. She again put her hands on her stomach, and sat there on the ground crying...she needed to get out of here. But more importantly...she needed to get out of here for the sake of her and Gunther's future child. It's been far too long...far too long that she had suffered through this hell. It was time to leave...for good. But she didn't know how she would build up courage enough to do so. She knew she would visit Gunther in the prisons every day while the asshole was away at court. She started to not sleep in the same room as Erikur anymore and stayed in Gunther's old room. It brought her comfort to sleep there, Erikur could care less where she slept as long as she still cooked, cleaned and slept with him every night. Not caring that she was pregnant, he still ordered her around like a slave and treated her like one still. But all of his methods were now more ruthless, and more violent. She just protected her stomach every time, not wanting to miscarry again...she didn't know how much longer she could stand this...but she didn't know what to do. Conflicted...she couldn't decide what to do...


	8. Daily Visits

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Annalise visits Gunther every day while Erikur is away at court...but runs into a little bit of trouble while doing so...

Annalise and Gunther have been seeing one another on a daily basis. She visited him a lot, and it was time for another visit with him. But this time there were guards near the entrance to Castle Dour both were Imperial soldiers as well not just regular guards. She approached the door to the building and the first one stopped her and said,  
“Hold there. You aren't allowed beyond these doors, Miss.”  
“What?? I've been coming here every day and now all of a sudden I can't?” she asked, sounding upset and confused.  
“Well things change...now you aren't allowed to visit any prisoners.” said the other guard.  
She narrowed her eyes and said,  
“No one ordered that. No one important enough. You're both Erikur's men...aren't you?”  
They glanced at one another, smirked and the first one said,  
“Well...aren't you the clever one?”  
She crossed her arms and kept her eyes narrowed as she jeered at them with hatred. She stated, serious,  
“Move away. I am your boss's...wife. I have a right to come here and go as I please.”  
“No...you don't. From what I know...you're just his own personal fuck toy and a woman he can beat whenever he wants. That's not much of a wife...now is it?” said the second guard, with a dark smirk and look on his face.  
That made her flinch and become rendered speechless. She looked down and said nothing else which made the first guard say, smirking,  
“Ooh...looks like that hit a little close to home. It's because it's true. You're nothing. A nobody...just like his previous wives were. A bunch of nobodies. Mostly all women whose parents arranged a marriage of them to Erikur. All because they were reckless, selfish, sluts. Just like you were before, right?”

That made her shocked to hear and she asked,  
“What do you know of them? His previous wives?”  
“Asking a little out of context aren't you? You have no right to know and have no right to ask. All there is to say about them...they're all gone now. That's all you need to know...ma'am.”  
That made her very nervous to hear. But she regained some confidence and tried to push past them to get to the doors, but she was stopped by both of them grabbing a hold of each arm. She wriggled to break free, but to no avail. All the other common guards were not getting involved just standing by acting like nothing was happening and going about their usual business. They were told not to meddle in affairs like these especially with these two soldiers specifically since they were both Erikur's personal guardsmen, he has them both paid off with very large amounts of gold...they also took care of some of his dirty work that needed done in the city. They just kept harassing her and making her stay back away from the doors, but this time one of them grabbed a hold of her wrist and pulled her to him. She was becoming afraid and he chuckled saying,  
“Damn...he really has you on a tight leash for you to be this afraid already, huh? We haven't even hurt you...yet.”  
The second one smirked and said,  
“Well, what should we do with her? She seems persistent.”  
“We can't do much since the boss hasn't told us to do anything to her yet.” he stated.  
“I guess that means you just need to move along and get back home. Shouldn't you be cleaning the boss's house right about now?”  
With that the one with a hold on her pushed her back enough to make her stumble but she was caught by someone before she hit the ground. She looked up with tears brimming her eyes and saw who it was. It was Beirand. She smiled at the sight of him and she ended up hugging him and he said, looking at the soldiers who were harassing her,  
“Ann? Are these men troubling you?”  
“Beirand! I'm so glad to see you! I haven't seen you in so long.”  
“It's good to see you too, girl. But, you didn't answer me. Are these men troubling you?” he said, now glaring at the men.  
“Hey! Hands off the lady, blacksmith!” yelled the soldier that had pushed her away not too long ago.  
His sword was unsheathed and he rushed over to Beirand and grabbed a hold of Annalise's wrist, attempting to pull her away from him. She gasped and cried out,  
“Let go of me!”  
She then yanked her hand back and retreated back to Beirand. Beirand spoke now and said, angered,  
“Keep your hands off her, prick! Corrupt son of a bitch! You're supposed to protect these people, not harass them like I just witnessed you do to this young woman.”

The soldier jeered at him and said,  
“She's not just some young woman. She's Erikur's wife. A very important man in this city. This city would be nothing without him.”  
Beirand couldn't hold out the snort that came out and it just turned into a full on laugh and he said,  
“What? Are you daft? Did you seriously just say that to me?”  
The soldier clenched his jaw and didn't say another word, Beirand continued by saying,  
“Is that truly how you feel about that pathetic excuse for a Nord? Or is that just the coin he's paying you talking?”  
“Watch your tongue, blacksmith! That's no way to speak to a loyal Imperial soldier.” he yelled.  
“Loyal? Loyal...? Loyal my ass! You're corrupt...I heard enough of what was said between you two bastards and Ann here.” stated Beirand.  
“I can have you arrested for this!” yelled the soldier again.  
“For speaking the truth? Hmph...doesn't seem like a very good reason to arrest me...especially for defending a young girl whom is like a daughter to me. Who your...boss...forced to quit working for me two years ago so it didn't...'sully' his reputation. He didn't want to be married to a 'peasant' woman and have it make him look bad. She told me enough in the letter she sent. He's a horrible man. Pathetic. A coward. He hides behind his money and he abuses his power as Thane on the Jarl's court.” explained Beirand.  
“Beirand...don't say anymore. They can kill you or have you put in prison...just like Gunther.” Annalise said, warning him away from saying anymore.  
“I can't be arrested. Then they wouldn't have anyone else to make their weapons and armor for them. If they kill me or have me arrested...they'll be fucking themselves over.” he said, loud enough for the soldier to hear.  
That made the soldier just growl in frustration and say,  
“Fine! You win this time, smith...but don't think that this is over between us.” the soldier stated, angered. He was only pissed because it was true what Beirand said.  
“Now...can she visit whom she wants to visit in the prisons now?” questioned Beirand, smiling triumphantly.  
The second soldier then approached and said,  
“Absolutely not. We know who she is visiting in there...her goddamn lover she fucked when Erikur wasn't home. His former housecarl: Gunther. There is no way in Oblivion we will let her pass!”  
Beirand seemed a little surprised that she took a lover while being married to Erikur, but he was surprised in a good way not a bad one. He said nothing further on the subject but turned to her and asked, putting a hand gently on her shoulder,  
“Ann...do you love the man they say you visit?”  
She nodded her head, tears streaming down her face now, and said,  
“I do, Beirand...with all my heart.”  
He nodded his head and said, to the soldiers,  
“She has every right to visit the man you imprisoned! What I understand from the way she speaks of this Gunther...he treats her right and loves her back the same way she loves him. Was he wrongly imprisoned?!”  
The soldiers started stumbling over their words and glanced at one another. The first one cleared his throat and said,  
“Absolutely not. He was imprisoned for attacking and trying to kill Erikur. His own Thane. The one he swore to protect and the one whose home he was sworn to watch over. He's a filthy traitor in my eyes. Same with my comrade here.”  
“Bullshit! You speak only lies. There is more to it...you're hiding it!” yelled Beirand, now getting in the soldier's face.  
This made the soldier seem nervous now. He was not able to kill him or arrest Beirand or Tullius would have the soldier's head on a platter. He was their only source for weapon and armor repairs and creations. No one else could do it in this city. Annalise stepped in and said,  
“They are hiding more...he was arrested for trying to kill Erikur and attacking him that much is true...but the real reason was because Gunther loved me and was sleeping with me while he was away at court. Him attacking and trying to kill that monster was for me and my own protection. He was protecting me from Erikur. He made me feel everything I could never of dreamed of feeling in my heart ever again. He made me happy. He treated me fairly! He never ordered me around like Erikur does! You arrested him because he loved me! Erikur didn't like that Gunther was with his...property. That's why he was arrested! The real reason!”  
She was now crying hysterically. Her cries being that of a woman with a broken heart. The pain of true love being ripped away from her unfairly showed all over her face.  
“Why you little bit--!” the soldier started but was cut off by Beirand punching him in his jaw. 

Hearing that from Annalise angered Beirand. He knew she wouldn't lie about those types of things. The second soldier unsheathed his sword and was about to attack Beirand but the first one stopped him by putting his hand up as a gesture to stop him from going further with the attack. He said, while rubbing his jaw,  
“Pretty strong hit for such an old man.”  
“You WILL let her visit him, and you WILL let her pass. Or I tell General Tullius that two of his soldiers are unfaithful scum being paid off by Erikur, a man who is a complete dick and acts like he's above everyone else. He won't take that too well...he may even order your executions having all of Solitude watch as the headsman cuts both your heads off one after the other. So...what'll it be soldier?” explained Beirand, in a threatening tone of voice.  
The soldier became completely different after he just threatened to use blackmail against him and his friend. He gulped and his eyes were slightly widened. He straightened himself out and cleared his throat saying,  
“U-Uh...there will be no need for that...Beirand was it?”  
“Then let her pass! Or I go straight to Tullius! And don't say my name. I don't want it coming out of your filthy mouth. All big and bad when you're picking on a young girl who is by herself with no back up, but someone helps her out and confronts you...you become like a frightened little child? Pathetic...just like that man you call a boss.” Beirand said, glaring at them with his jaw clenched.  
“O-Of course...sir. She can pass.” said the second soldier now.  
“About damn time. Now step aside! And if you say anything to your boss about what happened here today...he can deal with me himself if he's got the balls to do so. He wants to prove how much power he thinks he has in this city, let him try it with me and we'll see who comes out of it victorious. Oh and I'll just tell Tullius about you two if you tell him as well. So keep all what happened here today to your goddamned selves!” threatened Beirand.  
The first soldier said, stuttering,  
“N-None of what was said or done here today will be told to Erikur...you have my word. But this is only going to happen this once...Erikur is paying us good money to keep her away from here and to take care of more delicate matters he has us do for him.”  
“Delicate matters? What sort of matters are those?” asked Beirand, crossing his arms narrowing his eyes with suspicion.  
“That's none of your damned business, blacksmith! Don't push your luck, pal...you may not like the outcome. I take my work he has me and my comrade here do for him very seriously. You have no right to know what he pays us to do. Now, go...before I change my fucking mind.”  
The soldiers than walked away from them both back to their posts outside the doors to Castle Dour. Annalise smiled as she walked to Beirand's side, he smiled back and Annalise said,  
“Beirand? Can you please come in with me? I want you to meet Gunther.”  
“I would love to meet him. But shouldn't your father be the one who meets him?” he said.  
“I haven't spoken to them...Erikur forbids it. Plus...I didn't exactly leave on good terms with my parents...I do miss my brother and sister though. I wonder how they're doing every day...but I can't see them. I have a short time between when Erikur leaves...and then returns home, and I use that time to visit Gunther every day. But those men wasted so much of my time...it's already mid-day. Please...we have to hurry. I have to be back home before Erikur so I can cook his dinner for him.” she explained.  
“You have to be home to make him dinner? That lazy bastard can't do it himself?” he asked.  
“Yes...it's one of his many rules he makes me follow.” she stated, not wanting to go further on the subject.  
“Ann...what does that bastard do to you? You...have scars you never had before. You have cuts and bruises that look fairly fresh. Is that son of a bitch hitting you?” he asked, concerned for her.  
She looked down and started wringing her hands and she looked up while biting her lower lip, holding back tears and slowly nodded her head. His eyes widened and he pulled her into a tight hug and said,  
“I am so sorry, Ann...if I had any idea I would have taken care of him sooner...but that bastard made you cut contact off with your own family and your friends didn't he?”  
“It's not your fault...it's no one's fault but my own. But yes...he did make me cut all contact off with family and friends.” she stated.  
He pulled away and said,  
“What? Your fault? Like hell it is. That prick beats you for no reason and orders you around like a goddamn slave? That's not your fault at all. Never blame yourself.”  
“I don't fight back as much as I should. I just let him hurt me. I should be able to protect myself! I feel like a weakling.” she said.  
“No, Ann. It isn't your fault. Stop blaming yourself. You're the victim, not him. Come on...let's go see Gunther, I want to meet him.” he said, giving her a small smile.  
She nodded and smiled slightly. He could tell in her face that when he mentioned Gunther that she truly did love him and how happy he made her feel. Beirand was thankful for that. He kept an eye on Erikur's lackeys as they made their way past them through the doors of Castle Dour. The lackeys didn't move an inch and just side glanced them both as they entered the building.

They made their way down to the prison cells, and she was getting a little more ahead of Beirand but he allowed her to do it, and just smiled at how happy she seemed right now.  
“This Gunther...must be someone very special to her.” he thought to himself.  
She ran right over to the cell in the middle of all the other cells that also had prisoners in them. But they were all either “traitors” of the Empire for supporting the Stormcloaks, petty thieves, or murderers. They all had valid reasons but not Gunther. He didn't deserve to be in here. Beirand followed her and caught up with her once she got to the cell. He saw as Gunther and Annalise both ran up to the cell door at the same time. He put his hands through the cell bars and cradled her face. She kissed him through the cell and said, pulling away,  
“My love...two of Erikur's lackeys forbade me from coming in here to see you. The thought of not seeing you had me even more heartbroken than I already am. But...Beirand helped me get past them. He made them let me see you.”  
“Those bastards! If only I could just get my hands around Erikur's throat right now...I would choke the life out of him! Same with his damn lackeys. But they would fall to my blade, not deserving enough for how I would end that prick's life.” He looked back at Beirand and smiled with a nod of his head saying, “Thank you. If not for you...I would never be able to see Anna's face again.”  
Beirand nodded and smiled back, he got closer and stood near Annalise and he said, to Gunther,  
“It was my pleasure. I couldn't just let them push her around or tell her what to do and what not to do. She's like a daughter to me. And you must be Gunther. I just wanted to thank you for loving Ann and treating her the way she deserves to be treated. You make her very happy and that's all I want for her more than anything else.”  
That made Gunther smile wider and he looked back at Annalise with such a look of love in his eyes for her that it was almost unreal. Gunther said, softly to Annalise,  
“That's all I ever want for you too. You deserves happiness...and I can't give that to you in this cell. And it frustrates me beyond belief how close I am to you...but I feel so far away from you.”  
“I-I'll get you out somehow, Gunther. I-I'll find a way. I promise you. I'll get you out and we can run far from here...raise our child somewhere safer and father away from this city! I can't let them keep you in here. I won't let them.” she said, with her hands on his face through the cell bars now.  
“Anna...it's easier said than done...” stated Gunther, with a saddened look in his eyes.  
“Child? Ann...you're...pregnant?” asked Beirand, eyes wide with surprise.  
Gunther and Annalise looked at one another than back at Beirand. She smiled and said,  
“Yes. I am. Gunther is the father.”  
“Why...that's great but very surprising to hear. But...that son of a bitch still hits you? Even when you're with child?” Beirand smiled at the start, but got serious at the end.  
She bowed her head and looked back up at him and said,  
“Yes, he still does. But, I lied and said it was his so...he doesn't touch my stomach area anymore.”  
“That doesn't make things any better, Ann. And I'm sure Gunther agrees with me. He shouldn't be hitting you at all, especially since you're pregnant. No man should ever strike his wife, no matter what.” Beirand said, eyes filled with concern.  
“He's right, Anna. I do agree with him, he seems like he is a good man and he seems like he is a great father figure for you. Erikur doesn't deserve you. Please, Anna...if I die in here or if they kill me themselves...promise me, you will leave this place. Promise me you will move on and make a better life for yourself. The one you deserve the most.” Gunther said, softly to Annalise.  
“No! I won't! I can't just leave you. They won't touch you, and they won't kill you I won't allow it to happen. I will get you out of here! I'm determined for you to have your freedom again. Our child needs you...I need you...I can't promise something like that!” she cried out, tearing up.  
“Ann, he may never get out. Knowing Erikur...he probably gave him a life sentence. One he can't get out of. I will help you as much as I can too, just ask me I will help you if you ever need it. I am always going to be here for you.” Beirand, said. Kneeling down next to her now.  
“Help me get him out of this horrible place! Please...I just want him free again.” she said, tears falling down her face now.  
Gunther sighed and caressed the side of her face and ran his fingers through her hair then said,  
“I'm not getting out of here, love...I was given a life sentence just like Beirand said. They granted me no bail either. As much as I would love to get out of this cell and be able to hold you in my arms again...they won't allow it. Erikur has a very large influence over these guards. Every guard in the city, including some Legionnaires as well are being paid off by him.”  
She held his hand to her face and leaned into it. She said,  
“I can't bear the thought of never being held by you again...or never seeing you again. I don't know how I could move on...I don't want to forget about you. You made me so happy in the time we were together...”  
Beirand comforted her by putting a hand on her shoulder. Gunther looked like he was in so much agony being separated from her by a cell door. Beirand could tell...they were very much in love with one another. He hated seeing her like this...feeling hopeless, not knowing what she would do without Gunther in her life. Just then a guard said,  
“Hey, you two! Visiting times are done! Come back tomorrow.”  
“No! Please...no...I don't want to leave you here.” she stated, crying.  
“I'll still be here, my love...I'm not going anywhere anytime soon. You'll see me again tomorrow. But...I don't want you to leave either. Just being able to touch your face like I am right now...is a feeling I don't want to lose. I love you, Anna...I love you so much.” he said, to her.

She leaned in and kissed him through the cell bars once again, making this kiss last as long as she could make it. She then said,  
“I love you too, Gunther...so very much...”  
Beirand just left them alone for a few moments as he stood near the entrance to the prisons. After awhile the same guard said,  
“Miss, you have to go. Visiting times are done, I'm sorry...rules are rules.”  
Beirand could tell he was just an ordinary guard, one not paid off by Erikur, at least it didn't seem that way. She walked away from the cell, and was very upset leaving him there again. Beirand comforted her more by hugging her and walking her out of the prisons. He walked her back home since she insisted on going back there, so Erikur didn't get angry with her when there was nothing made for his dinner. Beirand hated leaving her there at his house, and she said he needed to go before he saw him with her. He left her there and worried about her the whole time she was not at his side now. 

She was in the kitchen only thinking about Gunther...kind of drifting off into her thoughts. She was cooking for Erikur...again. Waiting for him to come home...again. Once she finished cooking he walked through the door, she just silently set up the table, and she heard him say,  
“Your husband is back, Annalise...why haven't I been greeted yet?”  
She just walked over to him and reluctantly kissed him and said,  
“Dinner is served, my husband.”  
“I can see that. It smells great. How's my child doing so far?” he said, smirking.  
“Fine. It is hard to tell since I'm not very far along.” she stated, fake smile.  
“Good. I can't have a bad heir. Alright, time for dinner.” he said.  
He went over to his usual chair and said, annoyed,  
“What is taking you so long, Annalise? Your husband is very hungry after a hard day's work.”  
She rushed over to him and served his food to him. And even though she was pregnant he still expected her to sleep with him every night, until she became too far along to do so. He still “punished” her for being unfaithful, so he was never gentle it was always rough and violently. He still hit her...he still belittled her. But little did he know...Annalise was getting fed up with it and it wouldn't be long before she leaves him for good...


	9. The Time Has Come...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Annalise gives birth...but her happiness turns into sadness...

It has been 9 months...and the day has come for the birth of Annalise and Gunther's child. She had gone into labor earlier today and there were two mid-wives named Freya and Thalia here to help her give birth. They were assisting her right now. Erikur didn't even have the decency to stay there and see the child be born...good thing the baby wasn't even his. Annalise had visited Gunther all the way up until she was 6 months along, but after that she could no longer do so due to her swollen ankles and back pains. She was given these mid wives earlier during the earlier months of pregnancy, but they were only there to assist her and help her around the house. Beirand hired them and sent them over, Erikur didn't even care who hired them and didn't concern himself with it. He was just “far too busy” half the time. She was not spared any abuse from Erikur though, even with the mid wives there with them. He would just send them away at night time, and he would resort to pushing her around again. She had become so used to his behavior that she just expected it to never end, which pushed her to leave him even more. But she stayed only because she was pregnant and didn't want her baby to be born in the middle of nowhere with no help. So she stayed only for the baby's well being. 

The mid wives were helping her through it one was holding her hand, while the other needed to cut her and help the birth more easier since it was her first child. Annalise was crying, sweating and breathing heavily. The mid-wife holding her hand named Thalia said,  
“That's it deep breaths.”  
“Miss Annalise, when I tell you to push I need you to start pushing okay?” Freya explained.  
Annalise nodded her head frantically and then let out a scream as she felt Freya cut her. Then she said, to Annalise,  
“Okay...start pushing.”  
Annalise then started pushing, as much as she could manage. She pushed until she heard Freya say, smiling,  
“Good...very good. I'm starting to see the head.  
Annalise pushed more and kept going until she heard the cries of her and Gunther's child for the first time. This pushed her to keep going until the baby was fully out and fully born. After a few more pushes, Thalia got a nice, clean linen blanket ready and brought it over as the one helping her give birth put the baby in it and cleaned it off at the wash basin in the room. Freya cut the cord and brought the baby over to Annalise in a new and fresh linen blanket. She said, smiling,  
“Congratulations. You have a healthy baby boy.”  
Annalise smiled and chuckled happily seeing the baby. He had Gunther's eyes...and her hair color. Thalia said,  
“What would you like to name him?”  
“Triston.” stated Annalise, drowsily.  
“Wonderful name.” stated Freya, smiling.  
It was the name she and Gunther had agreed on during her daily visits over the last few months. Just when Freya was going to hand the baby to Annalise, she let out another yelp and started breathing heavily again. The mid wives did not know what was happening, they just presumed it was the after birth coming out but no...it was not. Thalia said,  
“Freya...?”   
“What is it?” asked Freya, holding Triston.  
“There seems to be another child coming out...” said Thalia.  
“What??” both Freya and Annalise said.  
Freya handed Triston over to Thalia and rushed to assist her through another birth. Annalise pushed like she did with Triston and it seemed like it was easier this time. After a few more pushes, the second baby was born. Exactly four minutes after Triston was born. Freya said,  
“Congratulations once more, Miss Annalise. You've given birth to another healthy baby, but it's a girl this time.”   
Annalise smiled at the sight of her second baby and chuckled happily again. The baby girl had her eyes and Gunther's hair color. Thalia smiled and said,  
“Do you have a name for this little miracle?”  
“Ryleigh.” stated Annalise, smiling weakly.  
“Another wonderful name choice.” stated Freya, smiling.  
Thalia handed her Triston and after Freya cleaned off Ryleigh she handed her to Annalise as well. Thalia already started cleaning off Annalise, and after she was cleaned she sewed her open wound up, and after it was sewn up, she started using a healing hands spell to make her feel better and feel more like herself. 

Annalise still felt very tired, but as she held her twins and looked at their little faces she knew the pains and drowsiness was worth it all. Annalise already explained to the mid wives that these babies were not Erikur's and she told them who really was the father and asked,  
“Would you both be able to take me to him? So he can see our children?”  
“We would love to do that for you, Annalise.” Freya said, smiling.  
“Yes. Let's go there now.” stated Thalia, also smiling.  
Annalise smiled and thanked them both. They helped her up, but they changed the sheets on the bed before they left. After it was all remade and cleaned up in the room, they helped her to Castle Dour so Gunther could see their twins. They got to the prisons and a guard asked,  
“Whoa...this is no place for small children.”  
“Let us pass. The father of these babies is being imprisoned here. And this young lady would like him to see them.” Freya said, serious.  
“And who might that man be?” asked the guard.  
“Gunther. His name is Gunther. Light brown hair, blue-green eyes. He's a Nord as well.” explained Annalise.  
“Oh...that man?” asked the guard, sounding a little sympathetic.  
“Yes...him. Why? What's wrong?” asked Annalise, becoming very worried now.  
“I'm sorry to say this, ma'am...but this Gunther you speak of...was executed at the headsman's block a week ago. I'm very sorry for your loss, ma'am...” explained the guard, saddened.  
Annalise was silent...and had a look of shock on her face. She couldn't bring herself to speak. The love of her life...the father of her children...was dead. Gone from her life forever. After a long time of silence Annalise broke down. She fell to her knees, Freya and Thalia made sure she didn't drop her children or hurt herself and knelt down beside her as she screamed and cried hysterically. The babies must have felt their mother's stress and sadness because they also began crying. Freya and Thalia had tears brimming their eyes and Freya asked,  
“Who ordered this execution?!”   
“I-It was a man by the name of Erikur. The one that Gunther had attacked and almost killed. He was his Thane and is the owner of every business here in Solitude.” said the guard, who had no idea who Annalise really was.  
Annalise froze when she heard who ordered his execution. Freya and Thalia knew Erikur was her husband and knew how he treated her. She told them a lot over the last few months. They also knew about Gunther, whom was her lover and Erikur's former housecarl.  
“That's all I needed to know...” said Annalise, trailing off.   
“I am very sorry for your loss, ma'am...” said the guard.  
She nodded her head slowly and was helped back to her feet by Thalia and Freya. They were pretty silent walking back to Erikur's house. Once they got back, Freya and Thalia took the babies away from her because they knew she would most likely have another breakdown. They were put into the bassinet that was near the bed. Annalise started to cry once again...and put her head in her hands, and started to cry hysterically. Her sobs were uncontrollable, and she was hyperventilating. Freya and Thalia did their best to calm her down. They couldn't imagine all the pain she was feeling right now. Her heart broke into a thousand pieces today. Annalise said, in between sobs,  
“I...need to...leave here...I need to leave...now! I can't...stand...the thought of...staying here...any longer!”  
“O-Of course, Miss Annalise...shall we help you with that?” Thalia said.  
“Y-Yes, we would gladly help you leave here.” Freya said, reassuring smile on her face.  
“Y-Yes...please...” said Annalise.  
They nodded and got her knapsack ready and started packing away everything that was hers in the house. Annalise also packed things into another knapsack. She was leaving and she was leaving today. Hearing how Erikur ordered Gunther's execution without her knowing was the last straw. Thalia always checked on the babies every now and then, along with Freya and Annalise too. Once everything she had that was hers in the house packed away, along with some food and drink as well, she was out the door, babies in hand and the mid wives following close behind her. She left no note or anything behind for Erikur. He would know once he got home tonight that she was no longer his to control and beat whenever he wanted to. She was a free woman...finally after so long...she was free. The feeling it gave her was peaceful and happy. She told the mid wives they did not need to follow her now and thanked them for everything. They nodded their heads with a smile on their faces, and went back to the alchemist shop since that is where they worked usually. 

Annalise decided to stop and see her family after so long of not being able to see them since Erikur did not allow her to do so. She hesitantly used her foot to knock on the door. It wasn't long until her father answered the door. His face went from being confused to happy. He said, to her,  
“Annalise? Is...that you?”  
She smiled and said, tears brimming her eyes,  
“Yes, father...it's me.”  
“Luciana! Damon! Marcella! Come in here, we have a very special guest!” he called out, happily.   
He gladly invited her in and she sat down in their living room, setting her knapsacks down onto the ground next to her feet, but continued to hold the babies. They were asleep right now though. The babies were now wrapped in warm, fur blankets. Her whole family came in very quickly and once they all saw her sitting there she stood up and smiled at them all saying,  
“Hello everyone...sorry I've been absent for so long.”  
“Annalise?! My little girl?!” said her mother, tears falling from her eyes.  
“Hello mother. I'm so glad to see you all again...” said Annalise, tears forming in her eyes now.  
Her siblings now a young man and young woman themselves ran over to hug their older sister. They were careful though since she was holding their niece and nephew. They looked at their new niece and nephew and Damon said,  
“Annie, you had twins?”  
“Yes. They were just born a few hours ago.” she stated smiling.  
“I'm an uncle??” he asked, happy.  
“And I'm an aunt??” asked Marcella, happily.  
“Yes. You both have a niece and a nephew now.” stated Annalise, smiling.  
Her father and mother both looked at the babies now. Her father said,  
“You're a mother? And I'm a grandfather?”  
She nodded and her mother said,  
“And I'm a grandmother?”   
She nodded again, and she let her father hold Triston and let her mother hold Ryleigh. Her siblings talked her ear off saying how well they've been doing at their jobs and how much they missed her over the years she was gone. She told them her kids' names, and she felt like she needed to explain why she was forbidden to come here. It was hard for her to start explaining, but she did anyways.  
“I feel like you should all know the truth of why I was not allowed to see you all for the past few years...my marriage with Erikur...was not a happy one...it was never happy. We were married for two and a half years...and it all started when we first arrived to his house right after the reception. His whole facade he put on for the year before we were married was fake... a lie...and it changed fully when he shut and locked the door behind him. He became cold, heartless...and he listed these rules of his for me to follow. The first one was that I was to quit my job, since he couldn't be married to a peasant, the second one was he wanted breakfast every morning he woke up and dinner every time he returned home and I had to serve it to him every time, the third one was he wanted a clean house every night he came home, and if it wasn't clean to his liking he would punish me, and the fourth rule...was...” she trailed off, tears forming in her eyes, and she let out a shaky breath and continued, “...I was to give him sex every night he returned home from court. No refusing, no fighting, and no excuses from me. After he listed all those out for me...he wanted us to...consummate...our marriage. I was very afraid at this point and he just lost it when I refused him. He hit me...and tore my dress up...every time I would look away from him or try to fight him off he would just slap me across the face...which is where I got this scar from...” she caressed the one that was on her face and across the bridge of her nose and continued, “I suffered through abuse and rape for those two and a half years...all caused by him. I also have many scars from him all over my body...ones that aren't visible to you all. But that first night...was a nightmare become reality. He was so...violent...so...heartless. I was sore every time he was done with me. He impregnated me...many times...but...I miscarried every time since he was not made aware that I was pregnant...I felt like he didn't deserve to know. But with these two...” she caressed the heads of both Triston and Ryleigh while smiling, and she continued, “...were miracles. But...I'm leaving him. And I need you all to promise me not to tell him where I'm going or say that you saw me at all. I need to get away from him, and I need to protect them from him. Please...you all need to promise me you won't say one word about seeing me or knowing that I left him...alright?”  
Her family was rendered speechless, and her mother and father just hugged her at the same time and started to cry. They knew she wouldn't lie about that...who would lie about that? Her siblings were holding their niece and nephew now, and they also had tears brimming their eyes. They all felt like complete fools believing Erikur was a great guy and was a good man for Annalise to have as a husband. Her father said, voice shaky,  
“By the gods...I feel like a complete fool...I was tricked by his facade...and I made you marry him...and made you go through that for so long.”  
“Father...it's not your fault. No one really knew how he was...I didn't even know...but it's over with him now. Don't worry yourself about it anymore...it's over. He won't ever hurt me again or harm your grandchildren in any way. Which is why you all need to promise me that you won't say anything to him if he happens to stop by here and ask if you've seen me lately...” Annalise said, trying to reassure her father.  
“We promise, Annalise! That bastard doesn't need to know where you or the babies are or where you will be going. He'll never know.” said her mother, crying.  
“Speaking of the babies...” said Marcella, sniffling.  
“Yes, what about them, Marci?” asked Annalise.  
“Ryleigh has light brown hair...your eye color...and Triston has your hair...and blue-green eyes?” she asked, confused.  
“Yes...that's something else you all should know about. These babies...aren't Erikur's. They're another man's...a man named Gunther. He was...Erikur's assigned housecarl. I...had an affair with him, and these babies are the miracles of that relationship. Gunther truly loved me, and treated me right...he was my first...true love. The first man I had a connection with...we had an affair with one another for many weeks...until Gunther could no longer promise me to not get involved if he heard or saw Erikur harm me in any way. Erikur was harming me again...badly. Wanting me to give him sex, but I started to refuse once again foolishly. Gunther came in and saved me from any further harm at the hands of Erikur. Erikur...called for the guards once he ran outside the house. Gunther went after him and the guards arrested him...he was given a life sentence in Castle Dour dungeon...only because he loved and cared for me...only because Erikur didn't like his property being with another man...” Annalise trailed off, crying. She put her face in her hands and sobbed uncontrollably.  
Her family was shocked in what she just told them. Not in a negative way, they actually all felt like Erikur deserved to be cheated on. Even her over moralized parents felt that way...and that's saying something. Her father and mother were comforting her and her father said,   
“We'll get him out of there. These babies deserve to have their father in their lives. We will find a way, I promise you, Annalise.”  
Annalise cried harder when he said that. She spoke again, voice breaking and tears falling,  
“You can't, father...it's too late...”  
“What? Too late? How?” asked her mother, concerned.  
She looked up at them, face wet with tears,  
“Erikur...that fucking prick! He ordered his execution a week before Triston and Ryleigh were born...without telling me a damn thing!”  
The anger and heartbreak showed in her tone while she said that to them. She never cursed...so it was effecting her deeply.   
“That bastard!” exclaimed Damon, angered by what he just heard from his older sister.  
“What kind of monster does that?!” exclaimed Marcella.  
“Erikur does...he doesn't give a shit about anyone but himself and his needs.” stated Annalise, wiping stray tears away.

After speaking with her family further, she again told them to promise her not to say anything to him. They all swore he would not know one detail about her leaving and they will say that they didn't see her at all if he just so happens to stop by and ask if they'd seen her once he realizes that she has left him. She then told her family goodbye one last time. This would probably be her last time she would ever see them again. She promised she would keep in touch with them and they of course kept their word of them burning the letters after they were read so he didn't see them if he just so happened to stop by...and he most definitely would. Her family helped her bring her things to the carriage she hired to take her as far as the driver would take her: Riften. She had her babies in their thick, fur blankets and she said her last goodbyes and the carriage driver then began driving her away from this city...from this horrible, tainted city. She couldn't help but smile to herself triumphantly as she watched the city get smaller and smaller...and further into the distance behind her. She held her babies close and made sure they were warm, dry and happy. They were her last joy she had left in her life...and the only pieces of Gunther she had left as well. She swore to herself that she would never love anyone ever again...no matter what. But...most promises are broken especially ones made to yourself. Only time would tell her when the time was right to move on and get another man in her life...even she didn't know when that time would be. But for now...all she cared about now was her children, nothing else to her mattered. She was a mother now and would do everything in her power to protect them from anything and from anyone who threatened their lives. She didn't know what she would do once she arrived in Riften, but she would do whatever she could to support herself and her kids. She would find something, even though she heard Riften is not exactly the best or safe city in Skyrim...but it was the best place to go if you were in hiding. But she knew the carriage driver could only go so far before he would have to make a stop for his horse and himself. She would stay wherever that would be for however long she felt the need to. She was determined to get away and she was going to do just that...but also find out more about herself along the way.


	10. Whiterun

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The carriage driver makes a stop...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all! I am SO SORRY for not being very frequent with this story. I have been very busy with work, finding my own place, my wedding planning and other personal problems I'm having in life. I understand that a lot of you like this story and enjoy it and I appreciate that very much...I just feel horrible not posting more often than I should be. I have started working on this story again after a very long hiatus on it but I am hoping to stay diligent on this and work on this more and post the chapters as I finish them up. Again I AM VERY SORRY! I hope you enjoy the upcoming chapters of this story! :D :D :D :D

Annalise had not slept this whole trip. She has been on the road for a few weeks now, and the driver was riding along a cobblestone road. She looked around at her surroundings and smiled at the sights. It was beautiful. This Hold, whichever one it was, was so breezy, sunny, and mildly warm. There were barely any clouds in the sky and there were birds singing all over. She saw them fly overhead as well. She also spotted foxes, deer and rabbits running freely in the wild. This was her first time being outside of Solitude and first time being anywhere other than there. She was just glad she didn't need to stare at those four walls anymore and was definitely glad she didn't need to lay her eyes on that monster...or having to fear him coming home and her having a meal done or the house cleaned. She could do all of that on her own time now...no one told her what to do anymore. All she wanted to do was focus on raising Triston and Ryleigh...and supporting them. The driver was starting to come to a slow down as they approached what looked like stables outside of a pretty large, old looking city with a towering building that was visible from where they were at. It looked like some type of palace...for someone important. Probably for the Jarl of the city. The driver came to a complete stop and said,  
“Well...this is as far as I can go from Solitude. My mare has grown tired and she needs a good rest. As do I. But this city is Whiterun. One of the most well-known cities in Skyrim. The leader of the city is Jarl Balgruuf the Greater. He resides in that very tall palace up there. Dragonsreach. I wish you the best of luck and fortune in your future, milady. It was a pleasure driving with you. I wish nothing but the best for you and your young ones.”  
“Th-Thank you, sir. I wish the same to you. Also...here.” she handed him a pretty swollen coin purse, and continued saying, “For your troubles and there's extra in there for food, drink and place to rest your head for a night or two, which I know you definitely need. I can't thank you enough for taking us away from Solitude. Words can't express how grateful I am.”  
He smiled sweetly at her and nodded his head and gently took the coin purse from her and said,  
“Thank you, miss. You're much too kind. Well...taking you from there was the least I could do. You seemed pretty desperate to leave there, and I was happy to get you out of there. Best of luck to you in the future.”  
She nodded and gathered her things and made her way up to the city's large gates. The gate guards opened the gates for her and she entered the lively, colorful city of Whiterun.

She couldn't help but gasp as she took in the sights. It was gorgeous here. So much more lively than Solitude was, the people here weren't all rich, pompous fops who thought everyone was below them and weren't worth their time. They were all commoners, with maybe a few people here and there that dressed more rich than others, but didn't look like they thought of anyone else as losers and people that were below them. People always said how Solitude was the most beautiful, picturesque city in Skyrim but in her opinion...this surpassed Solitude's supposed “beauty.” She knew Solitude was a corrupt, terrible city...what others didn't see or just looked over like it was nothing. She didn't know what to do about her things, so she headed straight for the Inn of the city which was actually just a straight walk from the gate, and near the market circle. She held her babies securely in her arms, and was very weary of the civilians here. They all seemed like they were okay people, but she was still cautious of them all. As she was headed for the Inn she heard many coversations and talk of a dragon destroying a village called Helgen. She was curious...she's heard of the dragons being alive hundreds of years ago, but didn't think they would ever return. She shook those thoughts away and just told herself they're just crazy talkers. She went to Inn and a barmaid saw her stuggling and came over to help her. She was a young redguard woman, who bared a scar on her face. She smiled and said,  
"Here. Let me help you with those. You seem to have your hands full, hm?"  
"Oh...y-yes I do. Thank you, miss." responded Annalise, smiling.  
She took her bags and went up the stairs and set her bags in a room up there, which seemed to be available for rental. Annalise still held onto her babies and went over to a bench by the fire, and the barmaid approached once again and was smiling at her again and said,  
"Oh, they are just precious. What are their names?"  
"Thank you. Their names are Triston and Ryleigh. They were just born a few weeks ago." answered Annalise, smiling.  
"Beautiful and unique names. Is their father here with you?" she said, looking around questioningly.  
Annalise looked down at her children and said, quietly,  
"Uh...no. He...was murdered."  
"Oh...I am so sorry to hear that. How was he murdered?" said the barmaid, saddended.  
"He was wrongfully imprisoned...and executed without my knowledge a week before they were born..." explained Annalise, still looking down at her babies.  
"How awful...I am terribly sorry for your loss. Can I get you something to eat or drink? You must be starved." said the barmaid.  
"Thank you. And oh, yes please. And if you have any, can I get some milk for them?" said Annalise.  
"Of course. But what can I get you, hon? My name is Saadia by the way. Just say the word and I'll get you something." said the barmaid, who turned out to be named Saadia.  
"Uh...what's good here?" she asked.  
"We have beef, wine, bread, multiple soups, pies, ale, mead, anything your heart desires, hon. I make a really good dish that people here seem to order a lot. It's a traditional Redguard dish, with foods and spices well known in Hammerfell. Pretty filling too since it comes with a dessert as well, also of Redguard descent." she explained, smiling.  
"Oh, that sounds really good. I'll have that then." said Annalise, smiling.  
"Coming right up. And what to drink?" asked Saadia.  
"Um...I'll have some spiced wine if you have any." stated Annalise.  
"Of course we have that. Shipped directly from Solitude too. Okay, hon, I'll be back with their milk and your food and drink once they're all done. I'll make it fresh for you." she explained smiling.  
Annalise thanked her again, and Saadia was off to prepare everything. She came back shortly after with two bottles of milk for the babies, and she was gone again to go and prepare her meal. 

The Innkeeper smiled sympathetically at her and said, in a strong Nordic accent,  
"I'm sorry to hear what happened to your husband. I couldn't even imagine going through the pain of losing someone so close to you. I won't ask why he was imprisoned since that is none of my business. But I give you credit...raising babies on your own can be difficult and you seem to be doing a very fine job of it so far. I wish you the best of luck in your future. If you need any information or rumors about this city just ask me. Also I offer small bounty jobs for anyone who is willing to do them. The Jarl's men come by and leave bounty letters every now and then. Good coin for those bounties to be fulfilled."  
"Thank you. I'll think on it. I may need the money for these two anyways. I need to do everything I can to keep them fed and content." answered Annalise. She continued and said, "...what are some rumors you've heard lately?"  
"Well...I've heard plenty. I assume you saw the Gildergreen...big tree, all burnt up in the center of the Wind District? People here want the head priestess Danica to do something about it...I don't know what they expect. But I'm sure she could use a hand in that matter if you're interested. I can also watch your little ones if it requires you to leave the city. Don't worry no harm will come to them, I'll make sure of it. Another thing...people are talking a lot about Helgen lately. A small village down the road from Riverwood about a mile or so in that direction. There's talk of the village being destroyed...by a dragon..." the Innkeeper paused for dramatic effect.  
"A...dragon? B-But...how? I thought they've all been dead for hundreds of years?" asked Annalise, clearly shocked that the people talking of dragons in the streets on her way here really weren't crazy after all.  
"That's what I thought too...but...too many people around here are speaking of it. Very few survivors made it. I did hear that a Stormcloak soldier and an Imperial soldier both made it out alive though and General Tullius and...Ulfric Stormcloak himself...but no one else was mentioned. Oh...how rude of me...I forgot to introduce myself didn't I? Well, my name is Hulda, I run this Inn. But I'm thinking about retiring and selling this old place to an eager merchant-in-training named Ysolda...but I don't know if I can give this place up just yet." explained the Innkeeper, whom was named Hulda.  
"Oh wow...that's very intriguing...I would love to be able to just get a glance at a dragon with my own eyes...but...I have these two now, so I can't really get too close to one. And nice to meet you, Ms. Hulda. I'm Annalise by the way." answered Annalise.  
"Very pretty. And fitting. Well, Annalise, will you be renting a room with us?" said Hulda, smiling.  
"Yes. I have no where else to go...how much to rent the room?" asked Annalise, worried about the price.  
"10 septims for one day. But, if it would be better for you, you can rent the room for as long as you need it and I'll only charge the 10 septims for the one day. I don't want to drain you dry of your money, you need it for your little ones and yourself." answered Hulda, smiling warmly.  
"Oh...w-wow...th-thank you. Thank you so much. That means so much to me...I can't thank you enough, Ms. Hulda." said Annalise, very grateful and slightly teary eyed.  
"Of course. It's no problem for me. I make plenty of coin with all these drunkards of guards and of course the town drunk, Brenuin. He's a beggar...but every coin he gets from others out of sympathy and pity...he comes here and spends it all on mead and ale. I feel bad for the man...but he won't listen to reason, so I just let him waste every coin he earns on drinking his life away. I can also get some beds made for them too if you'd like. They aren't hard to build, I can just get the town's smith to make them for them. I'll tell her what they're for and she will be more than willing to help." explained Hulda.  
"The town's smith...is a woman??" asked Annalise, confused, since a female blacksmith was unheard of in Skyrim anywhere. It was hard for people to accept the fact that she herself was one for many years...before she married that monster.  
"Oh yes. Her name is Adrianne Avenicci. She is amazing and she's also the daughter of the Jarl's steward Proventus. Her work is nothing compared to Eorland Gray-Mane's work though. He runs the Skyforge behind the Companions Mead Hall, Jorrvaskr. The Companions only get their steel from him. No one else is "worthy" enough to make their weapons...I appreciate their work and what they do for this Hold and all of Skyrim...but they are a bunch of self-centered, cocky, and prideful people at times." answered Hulda, rolling her eyes at the end of her statement with a small smile on her face.  
"Oh wow...I used to be a blacksmith myself before these two were born. I was looked down on doing a 'man's job' but my boss...taught me so much and acted like a father towards me. And...The Companions? Who are they? A type of Guild?" asked Annalise. 

Before she could get an answer from Hulda, Saadia came out with her meal and her spiced wine. Saadia said, smiling proudly,  
"Here you go. My specialty. I hope you enjoy it. Oh...your little ones are asleep. I guess the milk made them tired. I made sure I heated them up slightly so they weren't too cold for them. It must have helped them fall asleep. I can take them for a little bit so you can eat. I promise you I won't hurt them in any way. I would never do such a cruel act on such innocent and precious souls like them."  
Annalise was hesitant in handing over her babies. But Saadia reassured her they would be completely fine with her and that she needed to eat. She even told her she would sit right across from her so they never left her sight. Annalise agreed to that and handed them over to her carefully so she didn't wake them. She started to eat her dinner and drink her wine, while also idly chatting with Saadia and Hulda both. Luckily, this time of the day was pretty slow for them and they had all the time in the world until around 8 pm, which is when everyone started piling in and getting their night's end drinks and late dinners. The food was absolutely amazing, the wine tasted fresh out of a brand new bottle...it was probably the best dinner she's had the pleasure of eating in a very long time. She usually only got the leftovers from...his...dinners that she made for him. She was in food heaven right now. If the meals were always this good and the drinks were this good...she could get used to staying in this Inn for awhile. She was also considering taking Hulda up on her offer of getting bounties claimed for the Jarl. Gods knew she could use the money. 

While Annalise ate Hulda sent word to Adrianne for the cradles to be made. Adrianne made them pretty quickly. But they were in perfect condition, no cracks, no loose pieces...just solid wood. Adrianne worked with all types of materials, I guess woodworking was one of her specialties. The cradles were paid for by Hulda, and she gave Annalise extra blankets and pillows for them. It was starting to get to be around that time where others would start flooding in, so Annalise thought of that as her cue to head upstairs now. Hulda and Saadia just said to call on them if she needed anything at all. They would make sure to get to her as soon as they could. She smiled and thanked them both. Saadia was cleaning the floors and all the dishes that were dirty for the other customers to use them once they all came in. Annalise went up to her temporary room and put both Triston and Ryleigh in their new cradles. They were awake now, but were quiet. Saadia brought her up some more bottles of warmed up milk for them and also put some fresh fruit in a bowl near her bed. She then headed back downstairs to prepare for the tavern to become filled wall to wall. Annalise was worried that the babies wouldn't be able to sleep if the customers down stairs became too rowdy and loud after one too many drinks...and she was also worried that she would have a drunken wanderer come up to her room so she locked the doors. She sat on the bed and just kept glancing over at her children. They were starting to become fussy again so she prepared two bottles that Saadia had brought up and fed them both at the same time. She was making soothing noises and rocking their cradles with both of her feet. Once they finished up the milks again, they both started yawning, and she just smiled sweetly at them both and said,  
"Your father would have loved you two...just as much as I love you. I really wish he could have seen you both...I really do...and I am...so sorry, that you won't have a father because of me. But just know...I will do everything in my power to make sure you're both raised right...and well taken care of. That is my promise to you both...my other promise...is that I will avenge your father's wrongful death. I don't know when...but I will find a way. I love you both...so very much. Your father is watching you from Sovngarde...he will always be watching over you."

With that...the babies fell asleep as if on cue and in sync...with small, innocent, sweet smiles on their little faces. Annalise put the empty bottles near the door in a bowl so none of the milk got onto the ground and she heard the murmurs and loud voices of the crowds downstairs...drunk already, huh? She just sighed and shook her head. She then felt...very tired. She was overtaken with fatigue...and even though the people were being loud below she found herself drifting off to sleep. The next thing she knew...she was out cold. Completely asleep within a few seconds. Well, traveling as far as she did and having to raise newborn twins alone...will make you very tired. She just hoped they would be there still tomorrow.


	11. Extra Money Helps...But So Does Being A Legendary Hero

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Annalise takes on bounties for extra money in her coin purse and to support her children...but she also finds out something very surprising about herself when she decides to help out people in need of assistance of killing a dragon...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I AM SO SORRY I AM LATE ON THIS! I have had writer's block for many months...and I also apologize if this chapter is rather boring. But it will get better I promise you!

Annalise had been in Whiterun for a couple of months now. She was still residing inside The Bannered Mare. She was very good friends with Saadia and Hulda now and she trusted them enough to watch her babies while she left to go and fulfill the bounties she had picked up from Hulda this week. Even doing all these small bounties hasn't gathered her enough coin to buy a house. They were mostly bandit bounties, and she handled herself well with all of them. She still remembered the training she was given by Beirand and Gunther. Also what she taught herself to do came in use too. She seemed to forget about her training when she was being abused by Erikur though...just thinking about that son of a bitch made her shudder and made her skin crawl. She was glad she was finally away from him though. He most likely knew she was gone by now though...which terrified her just thinking of what he would do just to get her back into his possession...if he didn't kill her first that is. She was more scared for her children's lives than her own though. Their lives were more important to her than her own life was. 

She also had a new set of armor, one that she crafted herself. It was a set of Ancient Nordic Armor. She liked the look of it so she made a set for herself. She also crafted herself some ebony weaponry. She was asked by Adrianne, the blacksmith, to become her apprentice or just to start working for her shop but Annalise politely declined several times. She made her way out of the city, and looked at her map marking the locations of where these bandit camps were. They were pretty close by the city...well at least it looked like they were on the map itself. They were probably a good distance away from the city. She needed to get these bounties done quickly so she could get back to her children. She was grateful these bounties were local and not far away from Whiterun Hold. She didn't want to leave the Hold entirely. She knew she wasn't ready for that and neither would be her babies. She would do it one day...just not until they were older. But she also wasn't planning on staying in Whiterun for very long either. Maybe about a year or so.

She was walking along the cobblestone road and saw people ahead of her struggling to fight something...but she didn't see what at first. There were flames everywhere and then she saw and heard it...a dragon. A. Real. Live. Dragon. She was shocked at first and found herself frozen in place unable to move. But then she snapped out of it and unsheathed her ebony bow and readied an arrow and ran over to where the fighting was happening. She shot her first arrow, hitting it right in the side. It looked in her direction and it seemed to lose interest in the guards fighting it and put it's full focus onto her. Her eyes widened and she whispered,  
"Oh, shit..."  
It then breathed in deep and released a fountain of flames in her direction, luckily she found safety behind a large rock. Her heart was racing and she was breathing heavily. She didn't know why she got herself involved in this...now she was stuck in this situation. She just caught her breath and calmed her heart down and came out from behind the rock. She aimed again and released another arrow, this time hitting it right in the neck. It didn't seem to affect it greatly...it didn't even flinch. It was speaking as well...in some language she did not recognize. She just kept firing arrow after arrow at this dragon. The guards were being led by a dark elf woman, clad in leather armor and using elven weaponry, she seemed like a fierce fighter. Annalise felt determined to help take down this beast since it was a very large threat to the city and her children. She just kept picturing Erikur's face on every part she shot on the dragon...it was actually a very big help. The beast was weakening now. There was a dark elf woman amongst the guards as well who was a master at destruction spells which was a huge help with killing this dragon quicker. Annalise just kept firing her arrows at it, hitting anywhere she could manage. She was also getting closer to the action as well without even realizing it. Then after what seemed like hours...the dragon was dead. The dragon cried out, as it was dying,  
"Dovahkiin?! Noooooooo!"  
No one else seemed to hear it say that besides Annalise. She was puzzled with what it might have meant. All the guards and the dark elf woman turned their attention to her now and smiled thanking her. The dark elf said,  
"Now. Let's see if that overgrown lizard is really dead..."  
The dragon's body started to become engulfed in flames and one of the guards said,  
"What's that??"  
"Something's happening!" exclaimed another one.  
"Everyone, get back!" yelled the dark elf.  
While everyone ran away from the burning body, Annalise felt like she couldn't move and should stay right where she was. She didn't know why she had this feeling though. The body was turning into a skeleton and then these colorful streams of light made their way towards her...entering her chest. Making her gasp loudly and drop to her knees as her widened eyes looked toward the sky. After the colorful streams of light dispersed...she became very weakened. But then she felt this sudden pressure coming up her throat, she then shouted in a strange language she did not know...but recognized.   
"FUS!" she shouted.  
It was what the dragon was speaking as they were fighting it. She became limp staying on her knees. Panting. Weakened. The guards and dark elf woman were back over at her side. One guard was on one knee facing her at her level his eyes wide with shock and awe. He said, sounding amazed,  
"I...I can't believe it! You're...Dragonborn..."  
"D-Dragonborn...?? What...do you...mean?" responded Annalise, exhausted.  
They all then went on to tell her of the tales of people blessed with the dragon blood in their veins by Akatosh himself. All the Septim Emperors before the current Emperor had the dragon blood, one of them being Tiber Septim. Better known as Talos, and is now one of their Nine Divines. The dark elf was silent the entire time looking like she thought this was all nonsense. One guard, with a soft spoken but very prominent Nordic accent, said,  
"What do you say, Irileth? You're being awfully quiet..."  
"Come on, Irileth. Tell us. Do you believe in this Dragonborn business?" asked another guard.   
The dark elf, whom was named Irileth spoke saying, in a rather deep but feminine voice,  
"Hmph...some of you would be better off keeping quiet than flapping your gums on matters you don't know anything about. Here's a dead dragon. Now that's something I definitely understand. Now we know we can kill them. But I don't need some mythical Dragonborn. Someone who can kill a dragon is more than enough for me."   
"You wouldn't understand, Housecarl. You ain't a Nord." stated one of the guards.   
"I've been all across Tamriel! I've seen plenty of things just as outlandish as this. I say you trust in the strength of your sword arm...over tales and legends "  
After that they all dispersed and the dark elf woman, Irileth, who also turned out to be a Housecarl approached Annalise and said,  
"Thank you for your help. Come with me. The Jarl will want to speak with you personally."  
Annalise responded,  
"I-I can't go with you. I have my children to get back to. I was supposed to be going to finish these bounties and get the reward for them once they were completed. I-I need the money to support them."   
"I won't keep you long, I promise you. Besides, Jarl Balgruuf will want to speak with the one that stepped in and helped us kill the dragon threatening his city. He will be very grateful and may even reward you and the others who helped kill it."  
Annalise paused for a few seconds and thought it through. The word reward kept repeating itself in her head. She finally agreed to go with Irileth. She helped her to her feet and they walked back to the city side by side. As they were walking Irileth was rather quiet and seemed like she was curious about Annalise but never spoke up and asked her anything. She didn't know what to make of her. While she was lost in her own thoughts a loud thunderous noise rang through the air and then four booming voices followed shouting,  
"DO-VAH-KIIN!!"  
That made both Irileth and Annalise stop in their tracks and look up to the skies and towards the largest and tallest mountain in all of Skyrim: The Throat of the World. The echoes of the mysterious voices faded away and the thunder came to a halting stop but the rumbles echoed a little more before completely fading away as well. After they snapped out of their shocked state, Irileth cleared her throat and said,  
"We should continue to Dragonsreach. The Jarl is probably very...anxious by now."  
Annalise nodded her head and they continued on.

They finally reached the Jarl's Palace. Annalise had been here multiple times but has never met the Jarl himself only his steward Proventus. She needed to turn in her completed bounties for the reward that followed when they were completed, so she had met with the steward many times. They approached the throne where the Jarl was actually sitting for once. Annalise was surprised with how young he looked, but she knew he must have been an older gentleman, much older than she was thinking that is. Irileth went to the Jarl's side but before she could say anything, the Jarl was speaking to his other Housecarl who was a burly looking Nord man with a bald head and red war paint on his face that was 3 uneven lines, looking similar to slashes. The Jarl said,  
"You heard the summons...what else could it mean? The Greybeards..."  
"We were just talking about you and your lot Irileth. My brother needs a word with you." spoke the bald Nord man, in a very strong accent.  
"So, what happened at the watchtower? Was the dragon there?" asked the Jarl, speaking to Irileth.   
"The watchtower was destroyed, but we killed the dragon, my Lord. But we had help. This young Imperial woman was very brave and stepped in. She helped us slay the beast." explained Irileth.  
"I knew I could count on you. But I feel like there's more to this young woman than that..." stated the Jarl, placing his gaze onto Annalise.   
"Well...the men have taken to calling her 'Dragonborn.' But I myself find that hard to believe. Those are just tales and legends." responded Irileth.  
"Explain this, young lady." stated the Jarl, referring to Annalise.  
"Well...it's hard to explain. But...when the dragon died...these colorful streams of light pushed their way into my chest and gave me some kind of...power from it." explained Annalise.  
"Explain this 'power' it granted you." stated the Jarl.  
"I-I shouted in a language I didn't understand. And this powerful shout came out of my throat and pushed the dragon's skeleton slightly away from where I was." explained Annalise.   
"So, it's true...the Greybeards really were summoning you." stated the Jarl, ignoring Irileth's opinion on the subject.  
"The Greybeards...sir?" asked Annalise, in a small, timid sounding voice.  
"Masters of the Way of the Voice. If you really are Dragonborn...they can teach you how to use your gift." answered the Jarl.  
"Didn't you hear the thundering sound as you returned to Whiterun? That was the voice of the Greybeards, summoning you to High Hrothgar. This hasn't happened in...centuries at least. Not since Tiber Septim was summoned when he was still Talos of Atmora." explained the bald man.  
"Hrongar, calm yourself. What does any of this Nord nonsense have to do with this young woman here? Capable as she may be, I don't see any signs of her being this...what? Dragonborn?" said, Proventus.  
"Nord nonsense?! Why you puffed up ignorant...! These are our sacred traditions that go back to the founding of the first Empire!" exclaimed the bald man, whom was named Hrongar apparently. He sounded quite offended by Proventus' words.  
"Hrongar...calm yourself. Don't be so hard on Proventus." stated the Jarl, smiling slightly while rolling his eyes at the same time.  
"I meant no disrespect of course. It's just that..." Proventus turned his gaze onto Annalise and continued, "...what do these Greybeards want with her?"   
"That's the Greybeards business. Not ours. Whatever happened when you killed that dragon, it revealed something in you...and the Greybeards heard it. You'd better get up to High Hrothgar immediately. There's no refusing the summons of the Greybeards...it's a tremendous honor. I envy you...you know...to walk the 7,000 steps again...I made the pilgramage once, did you know that? High Hrothgar is a very peaceful place...very...disconnected from the troubles of this world. I wonder if the Greybeards even notice what's going on down here. They haven't seemed to care before. If they think you're Dragonborn. Who are we to argue?" he sighed then continued speaking, "No matter. Go to High Hrothgar, learn what the Greybeards can teach you. You've done a great service for me and my city, Dragonborn. I pronounce you Thane of Whiterun. It's the greatest title that's within my power to grant. I assign you, Lydia, as a personal Housecarl and this weapon from my armory to serve as your badge of office. Wouldn't want them thinking you're part of the common rabble now, would we? We are honored to have you as Thane of our city. I will also reward you the permission to own property in the city, speak with Proventus when you have the funds and he will make all the arrangements for you. I also grant you the reward of 700 septims for assisting my men and Housecarl with killing the dragon."  
Once he was finished speaking, Annalise finally was able to speak to him and said,  
"Th-Thank you, my Jarl. But...I can't afford to buy a home...I'm barely scraping by with supporting my children with the money rewards for bounties I've completed. I can barely support them...and I can't return to my home city, Solitude. I refuse to. Thank you for the offer...but I just can't afford it right now."   
"Children? You have children, miss?" questioned the Jarl, surprised that she was a mother. He thought she was a teen girl...but he was wrong.  
"Y-Yes. I have twins, my Lord. A boy and a girl. They are my whole world. I'd die for them if I had to." answered Annalise.  
He gestured for her to follow him up the stairs nearby the throne on the right side of the Palace. She followed behind him. He told everyone to stay down in the throne room, that he only wanted to speak to her and didn't want any interruptions. 

They were now on the upper level of the palace, and he stopped in the middle of the room and he said,  
"What is your name, young woman?"  
"A-Annalise, my Lord." she answered.  
"Annalise? Lovely name. Now tell me more about your situation. Where are you currently residing in my city? I would like to do everything that I can to ensure you have a good home for you, your children and are you married?" said Jarl Balgruuf.   
"Th-Thank you. We are residing in the Bannered Mare, sir. And...no. I'm not with anyone at all..." she trailed off, trying not to talk to much about her ex-husband or her former, now deceased lover.  
"The Bannered Mare? That is no place for a young woman and her young children to live for the rest of their days, way too cramped and filled with drunkards in the evenings. You...aren't married? But...where is your children's father? Didn't you come here with him?" he said, clearly confused.  
A woman with children and no husband was very unheard of in this time period. So it was confusing for the Jarl to hear her say she was not married but had children. She answered him saying,  
"No, sir...I am not married. I was...but not anymore."  
She didn't want to delve too deeply into her personal life and horrible past marriage so she kept her answers short and simple.   
"Did your husband pass away? Was he a soldier?" asked the Jarl.  
"No...he's still alive...in Solitude. I left him and took my children with me." she stated, simply.  
"Solitude? That's a bountiful city. You left that city to come to mine? It's much smaller than Solitude and we aren't very wealthy here. More or less middle class." he said, sounding in disbelief that she would even want to leave that large, spacious, beautiful city. That made Annalise look up at him with a look of "are you kidding me?" in her eyes. She began to speak, and it was turning into a slightly angry rant for him to hear,  
"You really want to know about me that badly? Okay fine. I'll tell you my little sad story. And Solitude?? It's not all everyone has made it out to be. It is a horrible city. Filled with corrupt guards and soldiers. And men that only care for themselves and no one else. There was one man there, the town's smith, that was one of the only decent men in that terrible city. His name was Beirand. I worked for him for a few years as his apprentice. I loved my job. He was the only one that accepted me as an employee since I was labeled as a harlot and whore by everyone else in that city and refused to hire me so they didn't sully their business's or their own reputations. The only ones who didn't think of me that way was Beirand and my siblings. Even my own parents...labeled me as such. But that was because I was one. For most of my teen years I was a prostitute. I lost my virginity to a man I didn't even know when I was fifteen. Just for money. I did it all the way up until I was seventeen and my parents found out about it because the Innkeeper, Corpulus, told my parents on me. When they found that out my father demanded I get a 'real' job and stop being a 'whore' and a 'harlot.' My parents were very religious and strict with me and my siblings. While my younger siblings listened to everything they said to them. I didn't. I rebelled so I was the fuck up in their life. My father was a perfectionist and was a strong supporter of the Empire. That damned, broken, and corrupt Empire. So, both he and my mother arranged a marriage for me. To a man I didn't even know. To a man they swore up and down was an outstanding man, and a perfect choice of husband for me. They wanted to control my life because I was their unruly older daughter. They thought making me marry a man like him would straighten me out...make me more cooperative and get a good reputation back. That man...that horrible, horrible, man...was named Erikur. I hate that man...I fear that man. Every time I am alone with my children I fear he is just going to appear and kill me and my children while we sleep. Or just send people to do his dirty work for him. But knowing how he is...he would probably want to kill me and my children himself with his own two hands. He was a monster while we were married for those two, horrible, long years. If pure evil was a person...he would be that person. He abused me, raped me, and treated me like a slave our entire marriage. He impregnated me many times but I miscarried because of him every time. But you know what...? I was glad that I did. Because I didn't even want to carry his child for nine months. It was horrible of me to think that way...but it's the truth. I didn't want a baby conceived in force and violence. I wanted a baby conceived in love and affection...consent. So...one day...when I couldn't take it anymore. I decided to end it all...take my own life...just to escape him. Because that's the only way I felt was how to get away from him...to never have to suffer at his hands again. So, I went to our bathroom...looked into the mirror...saw my bruised face and cut lip...and I broke down...so I grabbed a steel dagger, and I put it to my wrist...and cut as deep as I could..." she trailed off and showed him her wrist, with the still very prominent scar right across her wrist, and continued, "...I was smiling as I was fading away. I felt sweet freedom right at the tip of my fingers as I bled out. But his Housecarl...Gunther..." she smiled at the mention of his name and continued, "...he found me and took me to the alchemist shop for the healers to save my life. They did but I was very bitter towards them all...even Gunther. He asked me why I tried to kill myself...I told him and he felt horrible that I was put through that hell with Erikur. I found out that Gunther cared about me deeply...I also felt that connection with him. I couldn't explain it. So...that day, he took me back home and we...slept together. And that day...our affair blossomed. He was the only man I truly felt a connection with and my first, only true love. My children...are the fruit of that affair. Gunther was so happy when I told him I was pregnant and how I knew that the child I was carrying was his. Erikur found out about us...but not my children, and had Gunther imprisioned. Gave him a life sentence. Then...the day my children were born. I wanted to let them meet their dad...but a guard told us he had been executed at the headsman's block just a week prior to our children being born by Erikur's orders, he didn't even tell me he ordered his execution. So I left Erikur and that damned city behind. And I'm never going back. Ever. I'll do anything in m power to keep Gunther and I's children as far away from my estranged, psychotic, controlling ex-husband as I can. So I'm going to be on the run for awhile. I'll stay somewhere permanently once they are older and I for sure know Erikur will not find us. So...there's my life summarized for you. Happy now?"

Jarl Balgruuf was completely shocked and speechless. He finally cleared his throat and said,  
"I-I'm...very, very sorry that you went through all of that. I shouldn't have pried...my apologies."   
"No...I'm the one who should be apologizing...I shouldn't have ranted on like that. But...you wanted answers...now you have them." said Annalise, head down.  
"Listen, Annalise--" he started but she cut him off.  
"Please don't call me by my full name. Just Ann. I can't stand being called my full name because that's all Erikur called me by. No nicknames from him, because I was just an object to him." she said, looking back up at him.  
"Oh, alright. No Annalise. Just Ann. Gotcha. Well, Ann...I have an offer I think you may like. Since you are a young, single mother raising twins on your own...how about I give you Breezehome, the home up for sale, free of charge? Fully furnished and everything. My treat. It's the least I can do for you." he said, smiling.  
"W-What? R-Really? A-Are you sure, my Lord?" she said, clearly flattered and very surprised with his offer.   
"Of course I am. I'm a single father raising three children on my own. I understand how hard it can be. My children barely get any time with me anymore though...and have grown to be quite spoiled...and demanding. Please, take the house. It is my gift to you. I will pay for it and all the furnishings. I will even have small cradles or cribs made for them. I will pay for all the food shelves and cabinets to be filled with many different foods, wines and ingredients. Please, accept my offer, Ann. You deserve a better place to raise your children in, not some tavern." explained the Jarl.   
"W-Wow...th-thank you so much! Of course, I accept your offer. This means more to me than you know...I really, truly appreciate this. I-I hope you don't think I told you a summary of my life story just to get this house for free...I really wasn't excpecting your offer. I do really appreciate it." she said.  
"Of course I don't think you told me just because of the offer I gave. I made that choice on my own. You didn't push it from me. I just thought of it and offered. Because I believe you truly deserve this and so do your children. I am very glad you accepted the offer, Ann. Here." he reached into his pocket and gave her the key to her new home and continued speaking, "This is the key to Breezehome. I will arrange for my men to move the furnishings into the home. It should be ready first thing in the morning. I promise you that. And don't worry I have a copy of the key so they can get into the house and fully furnish it all. After they are done I will also give you the copy of the key as well to ensure safety is my number one concern for you and your children. I am glad to have you as a citizen of my city. Welcome. I hope you like your new home. And hope you stay here for awhile." 

She smiled widely and she couldn't hold it back, so she threw her arms around him and hugged him very tightly. He was taken aback but smiled and patted her back slightly. She said, tearing up,  
"Thank you, thank you, a thousand times thank you! I am so happy. And so grateful to you, my Lord."  
"Anytime, Ann. And if you need anything else, do not hesitate to ask me. Oh, and between you and me. You can just call me Balgruuf. No need for formalities between two friends now, eh? Now, you are probably eager to get back to your children. And I've kept you long enough. Good night, and rest well. You'll have your own home tomorrow morning so say goodbye to the Bannered Mare." explained the Jarl.  
She nodded her head and she left the palace in a hurry...very eager to move into her own home tomorrow morning. Her life just got a little bit better, but she wasn't planning on staying here forever. She needed to keep moving, and make sure Erikur would never find them. Whatever it took to stay as far from him as possible...she would do.

Annalise lived in Whiterun for two years. But once her twins turned two years of age she felt like it was time to move on to the next city. She also wasn't making enough money on bounties alone, even the dragon bounties. Lydia served as a babysitter while she was away willingly and she was also their protector. But she still made sure she was back home after a week's time at the latest. Once Annalise decided to pack up and leave Whiterun, she informed all of her friends she had made while she lived in the quaint, quiet city that she was indeed, leaving. She had become better at being a bounty hunter, but the rewards weren't what she needed, they were far too small of rewards. The only ones that paid highly were the dragon ones and the giant ones. The bandit ones weren't so rewarding. Her children, now two years of age, were walking and talking slightly on their own now, but they were actually very well behaved for their age. But Annalise's next place to live was Riften...the best place to go especially when you were hiding from people and not wanting to be found. Another plus for Riften was that it was home of the Thieves Guild. And Annalise wanted to join up with them...they would definitely give her more money than these bounties ever would...well...at least she hoped they would. But...she was willing to try ANYTHING to support her children. Annalise hoped that Riften would be her final and permanent home, but only time would tell.


	12. Next Stop: Riften

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Annalise leaves Whiterun after two years and heads to Riften to hopefully make extra money being a thief...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SORRY! I've been writing multiple chapters and was planning on posting 3 or more on here at a time. But I've also been getting sidetracked with other fanfic and character ideas...but I'll get back to this more often! I promise! ^_^

Annalise hired the carriage at the Whiterun stables, and had all her bags packed up and their cribs that the Jarl had made for her children were among those things packed. She let the Jarl know she was leaving Whiterun and he seemed sad to see her go, but he understood her reasoning for always being on the move. He arranged some of his men to help her pack up and said the house was still hers and she was welcome to keep it in case she wanted to have a place to lay her head in case she ever came back to visit for an extended period of time. He had grown close to her over the two years of her being there, and she always did bounty jobs for him so he saw her quite often. She was friends with many of Whiterun's citizens actually. Especially Hulda, Saadia and the Jarl. The Jarl's men were assisting her right now, and were also told to accompany her to Riften just to help her unload everything and then come back to Whiterun when she was surely safe and not in danger. He didn't trust Riften and like he said before his main concern was her and her children's safety. 

The men were with her on the carriage and her children were quiet, and not very fussy anymore. She made sure she brought food for her children and everyone else accompanying them to Riften. They were both two guards that were there when she discovered she was Dragonborn two years ago. They willingly helped her out with moving and gladly accepted when the Jarl asked them to accompany her and her children to Riften. The carriage driver charged 350 septims to take her to Riften and she luckily had it on her so she could pay it to him after he dropped them off at Riften. It would take about a week to get there since Riften was pretty much on the edge of Skyrim out in the wilderness. The Rift was a beautiful but dangerous Hold. There were a lot of bandits and dangerous wildlife...plus where she was going had a bad rep too because of the Thieves Guild making it's home there. But Annalise knew it was the perfect area to go to because it's the last place Erikur would even think about going to, and he may not even show up there at all which is even better. She was anxious to arrive there and hopefully start her life with the Thieves Guild. She just hoped they would accept her right away.

After about a week of traveling on the road, they finally arrived to the run-down looking city of Riften. The guards that were with her were already on edge just getting driven up to the gate. Annalise was more fascinated than on edge. Her children seemed to be quite fascinated too, but they were looking at all the colorful trees surrounding the city. They were pointing at them and having their mom look at them too, she did and smiled at the sight of them. The slight chill in the air made this the perfect Fall weather. That was another reason why Annalise wanted to come here. She never got to see what The Rift looked like and was only used to Summer type weathers because of Solitude and Whiterun always having that weather. The carriage came to a stop and they all walked off of the cart and onto the ground once more, Annalise carried both of her children off with her and the guards stayed near the exit of the cart to help her off if needed. Once she was off they proceeded to carry her bags for her and the cribs. Annalise handed the carriage driver the 350 septims and thanked him for the ride here while also putting another 80 septims onto that for a tip. He nodded in thanks, and waited for the Whiterun guards to return back to the cart so they could head back to Whiterun after helping her out. She had just enough money for her to buy a house in the city, and hoped one was for sale so she didn't have to stay in the local tavern again especially in this city. She knew she was going to speak with the Jarl of the city to see if there was one for sale, and she crossed her fingers that there was one for her to buy because she had just enough for a house and then she would be broke again.

The guards escorted her to the gate and the guard at the gate stopped them and said,  
"Hold there. Before I let you into Riften...you need to pay the vistor's tax..."  
Annalise narrowed her eyes and said,  
"Really? And what is this 'tax' for?"  
"For the privlege of entering the city...why does it matter?" said the shady guard.  
"Wow...targeting a single mother of two year old twins just to get a little extra money in your pockets? Hmm, seems pretty low for anyone really. I struggle every day just to keep these two fed and clothed and to keep a roof over their heads. Now you can shove your 'vistor's tax' up your corrupt ass. I know this isn't legal. It's a shakedown actually. Now...for your sake and for you to be spared from an overprotective mother's wrath...I would unlock that gate and let us in if I were you." said Annalise, clearly not in the mood for this right now.  
"U-Uh...I-I...um..." stuttered the shady "guard."  
"I'll let you in, miss. I...apologize for my colleague's behavior and greed. He isn't supposed to be doing this anyways." said the other guard, very apologetic.  
"Thank you. You're very kind, sir. Much kinder than your 'friend' over there that is." stated Annalise, smiling slightly.  
The shady guard just said nothing and looked away from them. The friendlier guard unlocked the gate and let them in and said,  
"Welcome to Riften. Be very mindful of this city. I recommend staying indoors at night especially when you have two little ones as young as they are. Lock your doors, make sure your windows are secured also. Thieves run rampant in this city...like they own the place especially at night. Nothing but braggerts and punks that lot."  
"Thank you for the warning. I will be very careful." stated Annalise, smiling. She was hiding the fact that she was planning on joining them.

They entered the city and the Whiterun guards followed closely behind her. They were to stay with her until she got everything situated. She was going straight to the Jarl's palace at the head of the city. She was stopped by yet another man and it was a bulky Nord clad in steel armor, arms crossed, and was leaning against a wooden pillar of one of the houses there. He said, to her attempting to sound intimidating,  
"I don't know you. You in Riften lookin' for trouble?"  
Annalise just looked at him without any reaction to his "intimidation." She's changed a lot over the years of being on her own and supporting her children by herself. The guards took care of this one for her. One said,  
"Excuse me? And who in Oblivion do you think you are, sellsword? She is a single mother. With two year old twins. How would she be a threat to anyone here?? Explain that to me please."   
The sellsword seemed to be lost for words and started stumbling over his words and said,  
"Look, I-I'm...sorry. I'm just a bodyguard for the Black-Briar family. I watch the streets for 'em and everything...I have to act like this. It's my job. I need to keep track of everyone new that enters this city. Maven pays me good money for it. By the way, I'm Maul. But I gotta say this...this city is definitely no place to raise young kids like them. This place is all kinds of fucked up. Crime is high. Poverty is high. Corruption amongst the guards is becoming more common. But listen...I can give you dirt on anythin'. Anythin' you wanna know? Just ask me. I'll tell you...and I won't charge you a septim."  
"I accept your apology, Maul. And oh, that's very nice of you. What can you tell me about this city other than what you just told me?" said Annalise, smiling slightly.  
"Well, what do ya wanna know, miss--?" he asked, gesturing for her to give her name.  
"Annalise. And whatever you can tell me would be extremely helpful." she stated.  
"Annalise? Nice name. Okay, I can tell you about the Thieves Guild, rumors about the Dark Brotherhood, or even more about the Black-Briar family. Your pick." Maul explained.  
"Okay. What can you tell me about the Thieves Guild here?" she asked.  
"I can tell you quite a bit. But I'm limited on what I can discuss about it. But my brother Dirge works in their hideout. I used to run with them myself until they started hittin' a rough patch so I took a job with Maven instead. She pays more anyways. But, if you're interested in knowin' more find Brynjolf in the market place. They could really use more people right now, if you want to join up with them that is. Just sayin' it's an option. Anythin' else you wanna know?" he responded.  
"Not at the moment, Maul. I'll let you know if I do want to know anything more. Also, what does this Brynjolf look like? You know, just in case I want to speak with him further." she said, not making it too obvious that she would be joining up with them to the Whiterun guard escorts with her.  
"He's wearin' a blue formal lookin' outfit. He's got red hair, medium length, and green eyes. He's also got a scar on the left side of his face and has a slight beard goin' on. You'll see him. He ain't hard to miss." explained Maul.  
"Thank you for the input. I'll speak with you again I'm sure." she said.  
"Hey, no problem. I'm usually at the docks so, find me there for anythin' you need to know." he stated.

He then walked away and headed towards the far right side of the city. Annalise then continued on to the Jarl's palace. She needed to know if a house was for sale in this city. She needed a real home to live in not a tavern. The guards didn't question her curiousity about the Thieves Guild, they seemed oblivious to it actually. She made it to the palace and entered through the doors, followed by the guards with her. She approached who she assumed was the Jarl's steward which was a female Wood Elf, with white-blonde hair sitting near an empty throne. The Jarl must be in their quarters right now. The steward spoke saying,  
"Hello and welcome to Riften. I'm the Jarl's steward Anuriel. What can I help you with today, ma'am?"  
"Hello. My name is Annalise. I just got here from Whiterun with my children, and I was thinking of making my new home here and was wondering if you had any available houses for sale currently?" answered Annalise.  
"Why yes, we do. We have one for sale. It's Honeyside, near the entrance to the city, and next to Haelga's Bunkhouse. Were you interested in buying it? I see you could really use it with two little ones to care for." explained Anuriel.  
"Oh, that's great to hear. How much are you asking for it?" asked Annalise, hopeful that it would be affordable.  
"It is selling for 8,000 septims. I can help you with the furnishings. Which are all about 1,000 septims for each set of furniture." answered Anuriel.  
Annalise became a little worried. She only had about 16,000 septims on her. She hoped she would have enough for the house itself and the furniture. She started to discuss things with Anuriel and she had hoped they could come to an agreement on lowering some prices of the furniture sets. She needed a full house of furniture. The Jarl came into the room and Anuriel asked her opinion on the situation and the Jarl looked at Annalise with her two small children and said,  
"I suppose we can come to an agreement on some things. But it just depends on what you are interested in furnishing your home with. I'm sure you want a children's room? Instead of an enchanter's lab?"  
"Yes. That would be perfect, especially for when they get older. How much would that extension be?" said Annalise.  
"That would be 300 septims for that. The kitchen furnishings, your bedroom furnishings, and all that would be 1,000 septims each. I cut the price of the children's room down a lot. So that should help you out immensely." explained the Jarl.  
"Yes! It's a deal. I'll take the house and all the furnishings you mentioned to me. Thank you so much for understanding my situation." stated Annalise, smiling widely.  
"Of course. It's the least I could do for you. Welcome to Riften, citizen. Here is the key to your new house. I hope you like living here. I'll have my men furnish the house for you while you wait here. I'll make sure they're done with the furnishings very soon so you can move in right away." explained the Jarl, smiling.

Annalise was handed the key and nodded in thanks. And the Jarl was right her men were done within an hour. She then made her way over to her new home, and was eager to finally rest after such a long trip. The guards were still following close behind her and helped her unpack everything, and stock up the cabinets with the food they brought with them. It wasn't really touched the whole trip since the guards brought their own food for the journey, so she had full cabinets for now. Once everything was completely unpacked, the guards said their goodbyes to her and her children. They put their left fists over their hearts and nodded their heads once. Saluting her and one said, while leaving,  
"Good luck, Ann. And please be careful here. I don't like the looks of this place or the people here."   
"Don't worry about me. I'll be fine, Bjorn. I think I'll make it work here." she said, smiling.  
The guards nodded once and left shutting the door behind them. They were headed back to Whiterun now. Annalise locked the door and started to cook dinner for herself and her children. She needed to make this work and that's exactly what she was going to do. She needed to find someone to stay here with her children while she was gone though, so she sent word to Lydia in Whiterun and offered her to come live with them in Riften. She needed extra protection in this city anyways. She hoped she would respond very soon. Or better yet, just show up here. But she hoped it was very soon, she needed to speak with this Brynjolf about joining the Thieves Guild. She needed money because what she had left was only 5,700 septims. That would last her for a little bit but it would eventually run out, so she needs a job very soon.


	13. Thieves Guild Recruitment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Annalise is finally able to speak with Brynjolf, the second-in-command of the Thieves Guild, about joining their ranks...

Lydia got Annalise's letter and packed up the little bit of things she had at Breezehome and made her way to Riften right away. She insisted she stayed in Breezehome but getting that letter from Annalise made her change her mind. She was close friends with her and would drop whatever she was doing just to help her out. Lydia knocked on Annalise's door about 3 weeks after she sent the letter, since the letter took some time to get to Lydia and plus it took her awhile to travel here. She was always up for helping Annalise. She grew close to her children too. She was like a godmother to them or an aunt. Annalise gave her a big hug when she opened her door and saw Lydia standing there. 

Lydia was also given her own room since Annalise asked the Jarl and her steward if she could add more bedroom furnishings to that spare room on the bottom floor. All the bedrooms were on the bottom floor while everything else was on the top floor. Lydia was shown to her room and Annalise spoke to her saying,  
"Lydia, I have to go to the market today. But please don't be alarmed if I don't come back right away. I'm getting a job to help bring some coin in so I can put food on the table and clothes on their backs."  
"Of course, Ann. I'll make sure that they are entertained and fed while you're gone." responded Lydia, smiling.  
"Thank you. I am very grateful for all your help with these two. I should hopefully be back soon." said Annalise, smiling.  
Annalise then left the house and headed for the market place. She was wearing her armor just in case. She had a small pouch carrying lockpicks and had her ebony sword sheathed at her hip...just in case it came to her needing it.

She arrived at the market place and was not making it obvious that she was looking for this Brynjolf, that Maul had mentioned to her. Then she spotted him. He was in a lone wooden stall, selling some type of potion that he called "Falmerblood Elixir" and claimed that it could grant you superhuman powers basically, and that it could make your love life much better as well. She narrowed her eyes and made her way over to his stall and as she got closer...she saw how handsome he really was. But she brushed those thoughts away, and repeated to herself "you said you would never love again after losing Gunther...don't give in now. It's too soon...much too soon." She then approached his stall and was acting like she was browsing but she noticed that she definitely caught his eye. Most likely in more ways than just one. But she wasn't interested in anything but joining the Thieves Guild. Brynjolf said quietly to her, in a very alluring Scottish accent,  
"Running a bit low in the pockets there, lass?"  
She looked around and saw he was indeed speaking to her and she said, acting oblivious,  
"I'm sorry, what?"  
"I'm saying that your pockets aren't exactly lined with septims. I can tell." he responded, smirking.  
"How can you...??" she started to ask, but he cut her off.  
"How can I tell that you ask? Well...it's all about sizing up your mark, lass. The way they walk, what they're wearing...it's a dead giveaway." he finished her question and answered it for her at the same time.  
"My lack of wealth...should be none of your business." she stated, trying to sound like she was offended and still hiding the fact she was there to speak to him about joining the Thieves Guild.  
"Cut the act, lass. I know why you're here to see me. I saw you speaking with Maul yesterday. You just moved into Honeyside and you have two young children. So...I know you need more money to support them, am I right or...am I right?" he explained, leaning in closer to her face at the last "am I right?" and half-smiling.  
She backed away at the sudden closeness, since it made her a little uncomfortable. He noticed this and straightened his back out so he was standing straight up again. She cleared her throat and said,  
"Okay...you figured me out. I guess I'm not the best actress. But...I did want to speak with you about joining your Guild. Because, as you said, I need the money for my kids. Since I'm raising them alone...well not entirely alone, but it feels like I am at times."  
"Your husband doesn't help out?" asked Brynjolf.  
"I...don't have a husband. Not anymore at least." she stated.   
"Really? What happened to him?" he asked, trying not to sound pleased that she was single.  
"I really don't want to speak about that...I don't know you and I'm not going to open up to you when we have only just met a few minutes ago." responded Annalise, sounding very defensive about keeping her personal life private to this stranger.  
"My apologies. Not my business. I asked out of context." stated Brynjolf.  
"It's fine. But can we please get back to the original reason why I'm here?" said Annalise.  
"Of course. Well...before I tell you about my organization. I have a bit of an errand to perform, but I need an extra pair of hands. And in my line of work, extra hands are well paid." explained Brynjolf, in more of a hushed tone. He did like her attitude about being all business. It showed she was passionate and cared for her children to want to make money for them in any way she could manage.  
"What did you need me to do?" Annalise asked, eager to start this.  
"I'm going to cause a distraction, and you're gonna steal Madesi's silver ring out of the strong box under his stand. Once you have it I wasnt you to place it in Brand-Shei's pocket without him noticing. Tell me when you're ready and we can get this started." explained Brynjolf, all business.  
"Madesi? Brand-Shei? Um...who are they?" she asked, looking around.  
"Oh right...I forgot to mention who they were. Madesi is the Argonian jeweler over there and Brand-Shei is the dark elf over there." explained Brynjolf.   
"Okay. Let's get this started. I'm ready to show what I can do." stated Annalise.  
"Excellent...I'll start my distraction then." said Brynjolf.  
He then started his distraction putting that phony, goofy smile back on his face and started saying,  
"Everyone! Everyone! Gather 'round...I have something amazing to show you that demands your attention. You need to hear this!"   
Everyone started to gather, including Madesi and Brand-Shei. Even the few guards that were patrolling around the market place did.

She made her way over to Madesi's stall and saw there was a strong box hidden behind a locked, sliding door inside the stand. She started to attempt to pick the lock, she listened for the click when she found the right place. She spent a few years teaching herself these things, so it was pretty simple for her now. She unlocked the door and looked around quickly to make sure no more guards were around and she started to unlock the strong box next. It was a little more difficult for her to unlock but she finally was able to unlock it. There was a few things in there but she only needed the ring, so she took that, reclosed it and closed the sliding door back up. She then walked casually over to where Brand-Shei was sitting but then suddenly she crouched down, looking around quickly again and then gently and carefully slid the ring into his pocket. He didn't even notice her at all. She smiled to herself and then stood back to her feet and went to join the crowd Brynjolf managed to gather. People were actually falling for his phony sales pitch too, which made her roll her eyes and she nodded her head at Brynjolf to signal that it was done. He then finished up his "sales pitch" and some people walked away wanting to buy his "miracle potion" and others were walking away grumbling about what a waste of time it all was and not wanting to buy it at all. She approached him again and he said, smiling,  
"Looks like you do have what it takes, eh? And here's your pay, lass. Just as I promised." he stated, handing her a decently swollen coin purse and he continued, "The way things have been going around here...it's a relief our plan went off without a hitch."  
She gently accepted the coin purse and tied it to her belt. She asked,  
"What's been going on??"  
"Bah. My organization's been having a run of bad luck. But I suppose that's just how it goes. But never mind all that, you did the job and you did it well. And the good thing is that there's plenty more where that came from...if you think you can handle it." explained Brynjolf, being a little teasing with her at the end.  
"I can handle it. I'll do anything for my kids. If it requires me to handle more things like this, than I'll gladly take that risk." she said, ignoring his slight teasing tone and flirtatious smirk.  
"Okay, lass. My organization makes it's headquarters in the Ratway beneath Riften. In a tavern called the Ragged Flagon. Meet me there in one piece and we'll see if you really got what it takes."   
"I'll be there." she stated, boldly.  
"We'll see about that, won't we lass?" he asked, smirking. Then walked away towards the town tavern.   
"I wonder why he was being so...flirty with me? Didn't he see I was ignoring those advances?? But he just kept going with them...it made me a little uneasy...I'd better watch out for him...he seems like he's a silver tongue." she spoke to herself, as she walked towards the entrance to the Ratway tunnels.

She walked further towards Mistveil Keep and then turned right and headed down the stairs near the orphanage. There was a iron-barred door with a wooden door behind it, she assumed that was where she needed to be. She felt thankful she chose to wear her armor instead of regular clothing because she felt like these Ratways weren't exactly safe to wander into without being armed and ready. She just wanted to get this "meeting" over with. She wasn't sure if this was an initiation or what but she was ready for it. She entered through the iron-barred door and closed it behind her and then entered the Ratway. As soon as she opened the wooden door, the terrible, overbearing stench of sewage and mildew hit her nose. Her nose instantly wrinkled, and she groaned in disgust. She whispered to herself,  
"Couldn't they have chosen a better, cleaner place to make their Guild's hideout at? It reeks down here..."  
She continued on forward through the damp, dark sewer tunnels. She would hear the occasional water drip or skeever squeaks in the distance, echoing through the tunnels. She saw a flickering light ahead of her and was confused. Was that a...campfire? Down in a sewer? That made her put her guard up and put her hand on the hilt of her sword. She didn't know what type of people lived down here...but they were clearly the menaces to society if they were living down underneath the streets instead of above in a nice, warm house with everyone else that lived in this city. She slowly walked toward the small room ahead with the campfire. She then heard voices speaking, which made her freeze in her tracks. It was two men. One sounded like he was snobby and the other sounded like he was a gruff, bulky man. The gruff voice spoke saying,  
"I dunno, Drahff, they'd kill us if they found out we were doing this..."  
"Why are you always acting like such a big baby?! I've gotten us this far, haven't I?" spoke the snobby sounding man to the other.  
"This far?? We're livin' in a sewer! You said we'd have a house as big as the Black-Briars by now..." spoke the gruff voice.  
"And we will! But for now, you worry about bashing people's skulls in and I'll worry about the Guild, okay?" spoke the snobby voice.  
"Okay, okay..." stated the gruff voice.  
"Now...I'm going to go and check the entrance to the Ratway...be right back." spoke the snobby voice.  
"Shit..." whispered Annalise, panicked.  
She frantically searched for a place to hide and she could barely see anything since her eyes have not adjusted to this darkness yet. But it was too late, he spotted her.  
"Hey, you! Stop right there!" he said, rushing towards her.   
Her eyes widened and she had flashes of Erikur doing that same thing to her going through her mind. It was like reality kept switching with her mind's eye. She backed away, hand still on the hilt of her sword. But then she snapped out of it and pulled her sword out of it's sheathe and pointed it at the man, whom was prowling towards her. He stopped in his tracks and unsheathed his bow, pointing it towards her now. He then continued and said,  
"Empty your pockets, or end up as skeever food!"  
She couldn't speak...she was still having slight PTSD from all that Erikur did to her. Her hand was shaking and her breathing was uneven and ragged. She didn't know what to say to the man. He spoke again saying,  
"Hey! Do it or you're dead!"  
The man with the gruff voice was heard saying,  
"Drahff? What's goin' on over there? I hear yellin'. You need me over there?"  
"Yes, you big idiot! There's an intruder in the Ratway!" exclaimed, Drahff, the snobby voiced man.  
Then the gruff voiced man made an appearance, his mace was unsheathed and ready to kill. They were both very dirty and mean looking. Annalise's eyes were starting to adjust better and she was able to see them clearly now. She kept her sword unsheathed and pointed towards them. Drahff spoke, questioning her like she was a child or just plain stupid,  
"Are you mute or something?? Do you even speak?"  
Annalise gained courage and spoke up saying,  
"Get out of my way...now!"  
Her raising her voice made them flinch and back off a little. She did sound pretty serious right now. Drahff stuttered,  
"N-No! Give us everything you have!"  
"I said...GET OUT OF MY WAY!" she shouted, sounding much more intimidating than she expected to be.   
They backed off again but still didn't get out of her way. She said, sounding intimidating once again,  
"Back. Off. NOW! Or die!"   
That made them back off completely and Drahff said,  
"Now...there's no need for that. I-I was just...testing you. Let her go Hewnon...all clear..."  
"About damn time. Get out of my way, low lifes." stated Annalise.

She only wished she had this courage when she was married to Erikur...but she was just weak and helpless and just let him push her around and treat her like shit every day. She just didn't know where this sudden fire in her came to surface. Maybe it had something to do with the discovering of her being Dragonborn two years ago. She pushed past them and continued on her way. She then made it to the other area and there was a small drop, she knelt down and carefully jumped down into the small cavern. She saw there was another iron-barred door, but it was locked up tight with a complicated lock, she couldn't pick it unless she wanted to lose all of her lockpicks. She just sighed and continued on. There was a small torch-lit hallway with another wooden door underneath it and she looked closer and there was a trap hooked up to the door. She disarmed it really quick, and opened the door with no traps or problems causing harm to her. She continued on and it was a room with oil all over the floor and another small room with a dirty looking bedroll and a couple pieces of junk on the bookshelves in there. She saw there was another small hallway but it was darkened, but she saw yet another door at the end of it. She felt like there was another low life in the room behind it so she put her hand on the hilt of her sword again, and slowly made her way to the door. But before she could even blink a man in ragged clothes and wearing what looked like enchanted fur gauntlets, and was unarmed, came rushing out of the room behind the door towards her. He started to throw punches left and right, just barely missing her. Eyes widened once again and she was backing away and dodging every punch he threw until finally, she pulled her sword out and he just ran right into the sword...running him through, killing him almost instantly. He let out a couple more choked, gurgling noises and then she pulled her sword out of his body and his lifeless corpse fell to the ground, a pool of his own blood forming beneath him. She just stood there for awhile, trying to regain a normal breathing pattern. She's killed people before but him rushing at her made her have more flashes of Erikur appear before her eyes. Once she came back to reality and blinked her eyes, she saw she was indeed in the Ratways still instead of back at that monster's house. She continued on and came to an abrupt stop because the room he came rushing out of had active bear traps all over the ground. There were dead skeevers with their legs or heads jammed into the closed bear traps. She just covered her nose and got out of the room before the smell of the decomposing animals made her sick. 

She came to a room with more oil all over the ground and a small set of wooden stairs. She saw there was a pressure plate on one of the stairs, so she stepped right over it. She then came to a room with a stream of light shining on a platform with an iron battleaxe jammed into it and a basket with skulls in it right near it. It seems like they used this area to behead intruders at one point because the axe had dried up blood on it and there was some on the platform as well. She just made her way to the next area and there was yet another low life in the room. She just sighed to herself and got into a sneaking stance and made her way into the room. She had her sword out and ready and she snuck up behind the man and she stabbed him right through the chest from behind, killing him instantly. She pulled her sword out and the body slumped forward onto the table he was leaning on and the blood soaked the wooden table and was dripping on the damp, stone floor as well. She saw a drawn up bridge and went over to it and pulled the lever on the wall, and it dropped, leading her back to the beginning. Good...now she didn't have to go through the entire Ratway again in case she needed to do anything else to prove her worth. She turned back around and headed towards the other wooden door she spotted while killing that low life, and went down the stone stairs and opened the door up.

She was now in a very large room, with a small pool of shallow water in the middle of the room and a stream of light coming down into the murky water from the well in the middle of the city above them. There was a small bar ahead, Annalise assumed that was the tavern Brynjolf told her to meet him at. She walked the curved pathway and saw the sign at the small wooden ramp that led to the tavern and it read "The Ragged Flagon." Annalise breathed a sigh of relief and made her way into the tavern. There were multiple people here, all wearing the same type of leather armors. But some wore black leathers, while others wore gray, sleevless leathers. The only one not wearing any leather was a Nord man, with brown medium length hair. He was dressed in barkeeper clothes. She assumed he was the Thieves Guild bartender. She saw the familiar red headed man standing at the bar speaking with a burly looking, blonde Nord man in leather armor, not like the other leathers she saw around the room and the bartender. She heard some of the conversation. Brynjolf was speaking and said,  
"I'm tellin' you...this one is...different."  
"We've all heard that one before , Bryn. Quit kidding yourself!" spoke the burly looking Nord.  
"It's time to face the truth old friend. You, Vex, Mercer...you're all part of a dying breed. Things are changing." spoke the bartender.  
Now Annalise was standing not too far behind Brynjolf and he saw her at the corner of his eye and smirked to himself and said,  
"Dying breed, eh?" he turned and pointed at Annalise and continued, "What do you call that then?"  
The burly man and the bartender looked kind of surprised to see her standing there without a cut or bruise on her anywhere. She did have blood on her but it definitely wasn't her blood. 

Brynjolf approached her and said, smiling,  
"Well, well...color me impressed, lass. I didn't think I'd ever see you again."   
"Are you crazy? Sending me through a sewer that was infested with low lifes that had an itch for killing people they didn't know? What was that all for? Just so I got assaulted or killed and you didn't have to go through the trouble of teaching me anything or having me gain money to support my kids?" said Annalise, rather annoyed.  
"Whoa there, lass. No need to be so snippy. I did that to test you and to initiate you to see if you really got what it took to become one of us permanently. Sorry if it gave out the wrong impression. I would never intentionally send you to your death. I would be a fool to do that." explained Brynjolf.   
"Really? Why is that then?" asked Annalise, arms crossed.  
"Because then I would be throwing away a potential asset to us and plus...I would never get to see your face again, lass." he said, smirking and sounding flirtatious.  
The Imperial woman with pale skin and pale blonde hair groaned and rolled her eyes when he said that.  
"No need for that, little Vex." stated Brynjolf, looking like he was pouting but wasn't really.  
"Oh, whatever, Brynjolf. She's obviously not interested. Stop trying so hard...plus I still don't think she looks like anything special at all. She looks like a failure waiting to happen. I'll give her about 3 days before she fucks up a job or gets killed for slipping up on said job." spoke the Imperial woman, apparently named Vex.  
"Excuse me? And just who the hell do you think you are?" questioned Annalise, aiming it towards Vex.  
Vex raised her brows, impressed. She said to her,  
"Wow. Maybe you do have a little fire in you. But...I still have yet to see it happen. So until that happens...you're nothing special to me. If you prove me wrong...then we'll talk."   
Annalise already didn't like this woman. She started to walk toward her and Brynjolf stepped in between them and said,  
"Whoa, there! There's no need for that, ladies."   
"Then tell her to keep her damn mouth shut." stated Annalise, angered.  
Annalise was acting much different now. It was like she got this boost of confidence after becoming Dragonborn. Maybe she was sick of being pushed around and walked all over by everyone and it just came on it's own. But she was starting to like this new version of herself. She was no longer going to be a pushover and definitely wasn't going to let anyone tell her how to live.   
Vex laughed, more like a cackle, and said,  
"Well, she's got a fire in her belly that's for sure...I may like her after all. But we'll see how she does in the future...let's hope she isn't a fuck up like the rest of your proteges were in the past, Brynjolf."  
Annalise again tried to go for Vex and Brynjolf put his hands on her shoulders and said,  
"Easy there, lass."   
Annalise shot her a glare and then put her eyes back on Brynjolf and he gently pushed her back further away from Vex into another room away from everyone else and said,  
"Listen, lass. Vex can be very hard to get along with...it's just how she is. But we can't have you two beating the shit out of one another when you aren't even officially a part of this Guild yet now can we?"  
Annalise realized his hands were still on her shoulders and she shrugged his hands off and backed away from him. She said,  
"Really? I hadn't noticed that she's a cold-hearted bitch. Thanks for pointing that out, Captain Obvious. Another thing I wanted to say to you...I've noticed these advances you're doing with me and I'm telling you right now...if you try to pull anything, or force me to do something I am not comfortable with...you're done for, you hear me? I don't need someone I barely know flirting with me. I don't trust you fully. You're a very shady man...not exactly trustworthy."  
Brynjolf put his hands up in surrender and backed off slightly and said,  
"Okay, lass. I'll try to ease up on the flirting. Sorry, but when I see a very beautiful woman I tend to flirt a lot without even noticing myself doing it. And usually, women flirt back...but when you didn't I knew you were different. And when you did that errand I asked of you flawlessly, I definitely knew you weren't like the others. You probably have your reasons about not trusting me. I won't pry. But you make me very curious about you. I would love to know more about you. When you get more comfortable around me that is. I won't push anything with you, alright? Just tell me when you want to and if you want to. I don't want you to mistrust me forever, lass."   
She was surprised he called her a "very beautiful woman." The last man that said anything like that to her was Gunther. And that seemed like so long ago. She just kept her current facade on and said,  
"Thank you. Now...do I need to do anything else to prove my worth and to join your Guild?"  
"Actually there is. I was meaning to speak with you about that. But that almost fight with Vex happened with you so I couldn't. But, how would you feel about handling a few deadbeats for me?" he stated.  
"Deadbeats?? What did they do?" she asked, confused.  
"They owe us some serious coin...and they've decided not to pay. I want you to explain to them the error of their ways."  
"Sounds good. Who am I speaking to?" said Annalise, all business.  
"Keerava, Bersi Honey-Hand and Haelga. Keerava is the Argonian woman who runs the Bee and the Barb, Bersi is the man who runs the Pawned Prawn, and Haelga is basically the town whore. She runs the Bunkhouse near the entrance to the city." explained Brynjolf.  
"Great, so I'll go take care of them really quick. I'll be right back with the money they owe." stated Annalise.   
She then walked off and back towards where she entered and exited the room.  
Brynjolf couldn't help but be enamored by her, usually he's the one who women become enamored for not the other way around. He was very curious about her and wished she would trust him more. But he was also wondering why she was so uneasy about people she didn't know too well. Maybe should would open up about why she is the way she is later on once she comes to trust him more. He could only hope so.

She returned about fifteen minutes later and had three swollen coin purses in her hands. She went straight to where Brynjolf was sitting and dropped all three coin purses in front of him with a confident smile on her face. Brynjolf raised his eyebrows and looked up at her and said,  
"So? Job's done and you even brought the gold. And best of all you did it clean. I like that. Dumping bodies and keeping the guards quiet can be expensive."  
"What happens now?" she asked.  
"Well seeing how well you handled those shopkeepers I'd say you more than proven yourself. And it seems like I owe you something in return. Here you go." he explained, handing her a big coin purse filled with septims. There had to be about 100 septims in it.  
She gladly took it and he continued and said,  
"We need people like you in our outfit."   
"Question..." she stated.  
"What's on your mind?" asked Brynjolf.  
"Word is your outfit isn't doing very well. Is that true?" she said.  
"We've run into a rough patch lately...but it's nothing to be concerned about. Tell you what. You keep making us coin and I worry about everything else? Fair enough?" he responded.  
"More than fair enough." she stated.  
"Now, if there are no more questions...how about following me and I'll show you what we're all about?" he suggested, smiling.  
She nodded in agreement and followed him.  
He led them over to a wardrobe and pressed a hidden button that looked just like a stone and the wardrobe opened up as well as another door behind it which led to another area. She continued to follow him and he led them to another wooden door and he opened it and gestured her to go in first and said, smiling,  
"Ladies first."  
She went in there before him but cautiously walked by him and waited for him to take the lead again. They were in another large, spacious room with a stone bridge with four attachments on it and light flooding in from the city above them. There was a man standing in the middle of the bridge and they were walking right to him.

He was scowling and had his arms crossed. He was looking around the room like he was bored and uninterested in everything around him. Annalise hated the aura she was feeling with him. It just seemed like it screamed "untrustworthy" and "shady." Brynjolf stood near where the scowling man was standing and said,  
"Mercer, this is the one I was talking about. Our new recruit."  
"This better not be another waste of the Guild's resources Brynjolf..." spoke the scowler, in a montone, nasally sounding voice whom was apparently named Mercer. He looked back at Annalise, looked her up and down with an unenthusiastic expression on his face and continued, "Before we begin I wanna make one thing perfectly clear: You play by the rules, you walk away rich. You break the rules and you lose your share. No debates, no discussions. You do what we say, when we say. Do I make myself CLEAR?"  
Annalise flinched back at the tone he was using with her. He reminded her too much of Erikur...she really didn't like this man already. She nodded her head and stuttered,  
"Y-Yes. I-I understand..."  
She was mentally kicking herself for acting so submissive with him right after she was ready to fight Vex earlier...now she was back to her old self all because this man in front of her reminded her too much of Erikur...he even spoke like he did. He seemed to smirk darkly at how she was acting right now and said,  
"Good. Now I think it's time we put your expertise to the test..."   
"Wait a moment. You aren't talking about Goldenglow are you? Even our little Vex couldn't get in." questioned Brynjolf, looking shocked he would assign that to a new recruit.  
"You claim she possesses an aptitude for our line of work, so let her prove it." said Mercer, to Brynjolf. He turned to Annalise again and said, "Goldenglow Estate is very important to one of our most influential clients. But the owner decided to take matters into his own hands and shut us out. He needs to be taught a lesson. Brynjolf will provide you with the details..."  
"Mercer, aren't you forgetting something?" asked Brynjolf.  
"Hm...? Oh yes...since Brynjolf assures me you'll be nothing but a benefit to us than you're in...welcome to the Thieves Guild..." said Mercer, still sounding and looking bored.   
Annalise watched as he walked away with a feeling of fear and uneasiness left in her body. She was frozen and staring at him with slightly widened eyes again seeing flashes of Erikur in her mind. Brynjolf had to wave a hand in front of her face and she flinched and jumped back slightly and he put his hands up in front of him and said, worried,  
"Are you alright, lass? You seemed very out of it speaking to him. What's wrong?"  
"N-Nothing..." she stated simply.  
"I know it's not nothing. Did he frighten you? Because you seemed to turn as white as a ghost when he was speaking to you." he responded.  
She didn't speak, she just kept staring at Mercer with uneasiness and fear in her eyes...so he just sighed and said,  
"Come on. We'll go in another room."  
She just nodded slowly and they walked to another room. Brynjolf didn't even touch her they just walked side by side. He took them to a room that seemed to be a practice room for combat, archery and lockpicking training. It was luckily empty. He spoke to her saying,  
"Okay. What's bothering you?"  
"I-It's just...Mercer. He...gives off this...bad vibe. And he reminds me of someone...someone I'm trying my hardest to forget completely..." she said, voice slightly shaky.  
"Who?" questioned Brynjolf.  
"N-No one...I've already said too much..." she said, not wanting to say anymore.  
"Annalise..." he stated, obviously wanting her to tell him.  
"No...don't call me my full name...I prefer a shortened version of it." she stated.  
"Alright. Is Lise good then?" he asked.  
She looked at him and said,  
"Lise?"   
"Yeah. Instead of your full name, I'll call you that." he said.  
"No one ever called me by that shortened version before...it was usually Ann, Annie, or Anna. It's a nice...change. I guess." she said, voice still slightly shaky.  
"I'm glad you're fine with it. Now...will you tell me who Mercer reminds you of?" he said.  
She didn't speak further and he just sighed and said,  
"Listen to me, Lise...you need to learn to trust me. I know...I came on a little too strong when we first met, but you see I haven't even tried flirting with you at all lately. You told me you were uncomfortable with it so I stopped. I promise you, I'll keep everything you decide to say to me between us, alright? I want you to trust me, lass. I can't help you if you won't trust me."  
"I don't...want to tell you anything right now. Please...don't push the issue. I'll tell you when I'm ready to..." she said, trailing off, and walked out of the room.   
He sighed, putting his hands on his hips and put his head down, and stood there on the practice room. He asked himself,  
"What happened to you, Lise...?"

Annalise walked out into the main part of the Guild. She was told to retrieve her Guild leathers, and get some extra jobs from Delvin or Vex for some extra money in her pockets. She retrieved her armor, and changed into it in an isolated area, and put her regular armor in her knapsack. She kept her sword and dagger sheathed on her hip. She got a job from Delvin, but not from Vex. She still didn't like that woman. Tonilia, the one who gave her the armor, wasn't any better either. She was basically just a Redguard version of Vex when it came to personality and attitude. She was now on her way to Goldenglow Estate, avoiding all eye contact with Mercer as she left out of the secret entrance to the Guild because she didn't want to see flashes of Erikur again. She was doing this for her kids...nothing else mattered.


	14. Sinister Confessions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erikur decides to pay Annalise's family a visit with nothing but dark intentions on his mind...

Erikur was furiously searching for Annalise. He has asked everyone where she could have gone...but no one knew the answers. Even his paid off lackeys had no idea where she would be at. She could be anywhere in Skyrim...she may not even be in Skyrim anymore. These possibilities infuriated Erikur. But he was just pissed off that he didn't have anyone to push around anymore. He discovered her abscence as soon as he returned home after court the day she left. It's been two years! And he still didn't have an idea where she was, which was absolutely perfect for Annalise and her children. He then came to a realization...he still hasn't asked her family yet. He was disgusted at the thought of having to speak to such "peasants" and people who were "below him." But he was also pissed that he didn't think of speaking with them first before everything else he did. He wanted to find her and kill her himself and take his heir with him to raise them to be just like him and to prepare them for taking his place on the Jarl's court in the future.

He made his way over to her family's house with his two most trusted Imperial Legionnaire goons. The same ones that bullied Annalise when she tried to go and visit Gunther while he was imprisoned. Erikur had a very displeased look on his face and approached their home, but gestured for his lackeys to hide until he signaled them to come out at the first sign of deception from her family. He knocked on the door rather loudly and impatiently. Her father answered the door and tried not to look angry just looking at the man who caused his eldest daughter so much suffering the whole two years of their marriage from hell. He put on his best fake smile, that was rather convincing and before he could speak Erikur spoke, trying way too hard to sound like he was upset that Annalise was gone,  
"Hello, Matthias...have you seen your daughter recently? I've been searching for her with no success. I miss her terribly. Would you happen to know what happened to her? Or where she could have gone? She is somewhere out there with our child, most likely cold and alone. I have to find her. She belongs home with me, and so she could see you all again."  
"Oh...Annie? No...I haven't seen her. I didn't even know she left." stated her father, lying.  
"Really? Huh. That's funny. I figured you would have spoke to your own daughter before she decided to up and leave me..." said Erikur, sounding more sinister than before when he was faking being worried about where she could be.  
"Wh-What do you mean by that? Annie wouldn't leave you without saying anything. That doesn't sound like her at all." said her father, trying to cover up everything he knew about Annalise.   
Luciana, Marcella, and Damon were all burning recent letters from Annalise in another room in the house, because they saw who was at the door and rushed to rid of the evidence quickly.  
Erikur than snapped his fingers and that must have been his signal to his lackeys, because they appeared behind him, crossing their arms with sinister smirks on their faces. Erikur, then crossed his arms and scoffed. He said, showing his true self now,  
"Matthias, Matthias, Matthias...you are a horrible liar. You know exactly where she is hiding, but you don't want to tell me. Well...I'll put it to you plainly..." he shoved his way past Matthias and invited himself into their home, and his lackeys followed behind and shut the door behind them, and stood guard at the door making sure no one got in or out, Erikur continued, "...you either tell me where the fuck Annalise is...or I have my friends here take care of you and your whole family...and I'll make it look like you just fucking moved out of Solitude. Your bodies will never be found...I promise you that. I have my ways...and my ways are very well thought out. So clever in fact...that I covered up abusing your whore of a daughter for those two years of marriage we shared. But I'm just such a great guy...you and your wife said it yourselves...I'm just so trustworthy and I was perfect for your daughter, remember?"  
Erikur was much closer to him now and Matthias was looking like he would burst with anger at any moment now. Matthias built up courage and said,  
"I'll never tell you where she is! You're the incarnation of evil itself!"  
"Ooh...getting loud with me are you? Well...sorry...that doesn't work on me. Now...I'll ask again: Where...the FUCK is Annalise?! Spit it out old man...time is ticking...and your life is growing shorter and shorter the more you avoid telling me where she is."  
Matthias still refused to tell him anything. Erikur was losing more and more patience. He became very angry and punched Matthias right in the stomach, making him keel over and lose his breath. Luciana was then heard,  
"Matthias!"  
Erikur snapped his head in the direction of where her voice came from and sneered at the sight of her. He said, to her,  
"Oh...how lovely of you to finally join us, Luciana!"  
"What do you want you monster?!" questioned Luciana.  
Erikur then pushed Matthias violently to the floor and approached her intimidating her right away and making her back away, but her back was met with the stone wall of their house. Her eyes were wide with terror and he trapped her there by slamming both his hands onto the wall behind her. He leaned in closer and glared at her. She was cowering and shaking, while turning her head away. Erikur said, smirking darkly,  
"Mm...you remind me of Annalise when I intimidated her like this...and I see where she gets her looks...damn. You look just as sexy as she did...especially like this..."  
He leaned in and sniffed her hair making her jump in fear, and claw the wall behind her. He said, low and threatening in her ear,  
"Tell me where she is...and nothing happens to you or your family..."  
Luciana built courage up and spit in his face and said,  
"Never! You disgusting, path--!"   
She was cut off by a hard backhand slap from Erikur, making her scream in pain and fall to the ground. He wiped the spit from his face. And spoke, angered,  
"Well. I see where Annalise got her disobidience and disrespectfulness from too."  
"L-Luciana! Y-You bastard!" exclaimed Matthias, who finally managed to speak again.  
Erikur just looked at Matthias and said,  
"You really should have trained your wife to be obidient. I did it with Annalise and all my previous wives before her...and it worked like a charm. Until my previous wives decided to defy me day after day...so much to the point where I didn't want them alive anymore. So, you know what I did? I beat them all to death, and had my men here dispose of the bodies for me. They made all their deaths look like suicides. I put on my best sad act and told their families that their daughters all tragically took their own lives and guess what? The 'bad news' was so convincing that their families believed me. Oh...they cried and cried so much for their daughters' untimely deaths...it was pathetic really. Their daughters were all whores and harlots...just like your daughter was. I was always the man those families chose to marry their daughters once they came of age...because I was 'perfect' for their daughters. Sound familiar?"  
Matthias' expression was that of shock and disbelief that anyone could be as cruel and monstrous as Erikur was. Erikur just smiled proudly and said,  
"But damn...they were sexy. I was a rather lucky man to of had so many good-looking wives in my years. But...too bad they were all defiant little bitches, they could have still been alive had they only done what I told them to...but...ooh...they missed that chance...now they're all dead by my hands. And to think...I've gotten away with it so many times too. I'm pretty damn proud of myself actually. I guess the power of money really can alter the influence over people's minds."  
"Wh-Why are you telling us all of this?!" questioned Luciana, eyes teared up and her face had a fresh cut and was bruising already.  
"Oh...you really think I'm telling you all this for idle conversation? Damn...you really are all hopeless..." spoke Erikur, trailing off with dark intentions in his eyes.  
"What...do you mean by that?" asked Matthias.   
"Well...I'll put it to you in words that you'll understand: I say these things to anyone...they usually don't live to repeat them. Get the picture now...Matthias?" responded Erikur.  
Matthias and Luciana's eyes widened and they started to panic. Damon and Marcella made an appearance now. Erikur smirked and said,  
"Well, hello there...I was wondering when the hell you two would join us. So...what were you doing in there, hm?"   
"None of your damned business, bastard!" exclaimed Damon.  
"Get out of here! Leave us!" exclaimed Marcella.  
"NO! I AM NOT GOING ANYWHERE UNTIL ONE OF YOU FUCKING WASTES OF LIFE TELL ME WHERE ANNALISE IS!!!" roared Erikur, fuming with anger now.  
That made them all flinch. He then rushed over to them and shoved past them, and went into the room where they were the majority of the time he's been here. He saw the newly lit fireplace with a bunch of burnt up pieces of paper. He knew they were letters from Annalise...so this pissed him off even more. Erikur than approached Damon and Marcella, and put both of his hands around their throats and shoved them into the stone wall, and was basically choking the life out of them right now. He growled and spoke, through gritted teeth,  
"You fucking pests...! So...you all know where she is then?! You're just refusing to tell me! Speak. Up. Or you're all dead! You hear me?! DEAD!"  
"N-Never!" stuttered Damon.  
Marcella was feeling like she was going to give in...but she knew she couldn't for the sake of her sister's, niece's and nephew's safety. She kept quiet. Erikur then let go of Damon and threw him to the ground and started to kick him repeatedly in the sides and stomach. His hand was still wrapped around Marcella's throat. He then looked back at Marcella and wasn't paying attention to Matthias' position. He was very carefully and slowly crawling his way over to Erikur. Erikur's lackeys weren't even paying attention to his position. He made it over to Erikur and grabbed a hold of his ankle yanking him down and making him let go of Marcella. 

Erikur was surprised but then became angered again. He punched him making him let go of his ankle. Erikur then pulled a dagger and slashed Matthias on the arm, making him cry out. Erikur said, to his lackeys,  
"Kill him! I don't have time for his shit! And he isn't telling me anything either, so there's no need for him to live anymore! Dispose of his body discreetly when you're done with him too!"  
"Right away, sir!" said one of the Imperial Lackeys.   
He then unsheathed his sword and stabbed him in the chest, making Matthias let out a few last choking and gurgling noises. Luciana screamed and began crying hysterically. Marcella had her hands over her mouth and was also screaming and had tears pouring out of her eyes. Damon just yelled in a rage and started to attack the lackey. He was punching him repeatedly, and making sure he didn't get his sword too close to anywhere on his body. Erikur got involved and yanked Damon off of his lackey and proceeded to stab him in the chest with his dagger. Damon's eyes widened at the sharp, tearing pain in his chest and then let out his last breaths...dying shortly after. Luciana screamed once more and so did Marcella. Erikur violently yanked his dagger out of Damon's lifeless body and was panting while smiling like a lunatic and said,  
"So...anyone want to fess up yet?? You've seen what I'm capable of...surely it scared you enough to tell me where she is now??"   
Luciana slowly stood to her feet and said, crying hysterically,  
"You are such a monster! What kind of man does this?! Killing a father and son in front of their family without remorse?!"  
"Well...I guess I'm that kind of man." stated Erikur, obviously proud of what he's done.  
"I'll call the guards! They'll drag your pathetic ass to Castle Dour dungeon and you'll rot there!" yelled Marcella, still crying and finally finding some bravery in herself.  
"Aww...sweetheart...you really think the guards will believe anything you say over my word? I have every single guard in this city paid off...they're all in my pocket. So go ahead...call them. They won't hear you and if they do...they'll ignore you. They care more about the money I'm paying them then they do anything else in this city. Even the safety of it's citizens." explained Erikur.  
Luciana was saying nothing, and he didn't even notice her pick up a steel dagger, and was now holding it with murderous intent. Something in her mind snapped when he killed her only son and husband in front of her eyes. Marcella saw her mother and tried to stop her but it was too late, her mother raised the dagger above her head and brought it down, attempting to stab Erikur in his disgusting head. But Erikur caught her wrist mid-way and said,  
"Really? You thought you could just kill me that easily, did you?! Fine...if you don't want to speak either...it's time for you to die too. Marcella stopped Erikur by saying,  
"NO! Stop!"   
Erikur snapped his head around to look at her and waited for a reason behind stopping him. He yelled,  
"WHAT?!"  
"Please! Don't kill my mother too!"  
"Give me a reason not to!" exclaimed Erikur.  
"I offer myself to you...as long as you let my mother live." she stated, head down in shame of the suggestion.  
"What?" questioned Erikur, with a look of disdain on his face.  
"I'll be your new wife...as long as you let my mother live." she said, head still down.  
"No...no, Marcella! Don't do this! It isn't worth my life! I cannot just hand my other daughter over to this monster to use and abuse as much as he pleases! I won't allow it to happen to you too! I was a fool for agreeing to arrange a marriage with Erikur and Annalise...I will NOT make that same foolish mistake again!" she exclaimed, and again tried to kill Erikur.  
But he was strong enough to withstand the pressure she was doing, and gestured his lackey that was bruised and cut up by Damon to kill her now. He nodded his head and ran his sword right through her stomach. Making Luciana's eyes widen and then the lackey yanked his sword back out of her body and she fell to her knees and then fell forward...lifeless. Marcella screamed in horror once more and slid to the floor, and sat there crying. She just witnessed her entire family get murdered...she didn't know what to do now. She felt so helpess and useless. Erikur then turned to her and said, fake sympathy in his tone,  
"Well...the last one left...and no one to back you up. Oh...you poor, poor thing..."  
He then flashed an evil smile and chuckled. Erikur continued and said, "...last chance, bitch...tell me where your sister is and you get to live, just keep all you heard from me to your fucking self! Or I really will kill you, you hear me?!"   
She flinched at his tone and nodded her head vigorously and said,  
"O-Okay! I-I'll tell you. She said when she came here...that she was headed towards Rorikstead...she's most likely still there...it is a remote village in the middle of nowhere."   
She gave him the wrong place on purpose. She would never tell him where her sister was really residing. She wasn't that cowardly. She needed to give him false information for her own life and for her sister's complete safety...she should have spoken up earlier and lied then...but there was so much going on and it all happened so fast...she couldn't even get it out of her mouth. She regretted not saying anything earlier but she was in too much shock and fear to even attempt to get it out. Erikur smirked, and patted her on the head,  
"Good girl...now that wasn't so hard now was it?"  
"N-No, sir..."  
"Sir? Well...aren't you the polite and submissive one? You get to live...but be warned...if what I admitted gets out and I find out you spread it...you're a dead woman...got it?" responded Erikur, warning tone in his voice.  
"O-Of course...my lips are sealed..." she said, head down.  
"That's a very good girl...alright, men! Dispose of these bodies. Properly! I can't have their deaths being turned onto me."  
"Wait! I want them to have proper burials...please. That's all I ask from you..." said Marcella.  
Erikur rolled his eyes and groaned in disgust,  
"Fine. Dispose of the bodies...but bury them properly. Out in the marshes. Do it late at night though...just like all the other disposals you've done for me."  
"Yes, sir!" said the lackeys in unison.  
"See you around...Marcella." said Erikur, then left the house.   
He miraculously didn't have a speck of blood on his clothing. And just walked out of the house looking innocent once more. He got away with murder again. But before he left he whispered to his lackeys, out of Marcella's ear shot,  
"Watch her closely. And do whatever you want with her. I could care less what you do. I only care about killing Annalise myself...nothing else. Don't worry about the guards seeing you...they know not to interfere with anything they see you two doing..."  
The lackeys smiled at one another and whispered back,  
"As you say, sir."

Marcella saw that the lackeys were staying in the house until very late at night, so she had a long night ahead of her. She was planning on packing her things and leaving when they went to go dispose of her family's bodies...like garbage. She was angered at the thought. She just stayed in her room and locked the door. Good thing the walls weren't as thick as they are outside of the house, so she could listen when they decided to dispose of them all. She started to pack up her belongings...all the things that were important enough for her to take and things that she needed the most. She couldn't pack up food until they were out of the house. She was going to join her sister in Riften...no matter what. Nothing would stand in her way. She had a rather large hooded cape for her to wear and hide her identity when leaving the city so she isn't stopped by any of the guards, to them she is going to look like the usual traveler that stopped at the Inn for awhile then decided to leave late at night to get an early start. She needed to be with her sister, her niece and her nephew...they were quite literally the only family she had left in this world. Everyone else was gone. She was leaving as soon as she felt like they were far enough away from the city. She was leaving this city behind too...no warning to anyone...just leaving without a trace. 

She heard them moving around a lot more and them speaking amongst themselves and once she heard them say that all the bodies were prepared and wrapped up and then heard that door close...she got out of her room, shut the door once more to make it look like she never left it. She waited about another half hour, in the blood soaked room, and then she opened the door to exit the house. And headed towards the city gate. Her very large and concealing cloak was on and her swollen knapsack was slung around her shoulder. She was on the first cart out of Solitude and headed straight for Riften. She had enough money saved up from her work at the alchemist shop and was able to pay the fee the carriage driver required to bring her all the way to the other side of Skyrim to Riften. Where her sister now resided. She would be there within the next couple of weeks.


End file.
